Sunday, January 26, 2020

Focus on urbanization within India

Focus on urbanization within India Urbanization or the process of the development of cities is a relative term which varies from country to country. urban being non-rural, that is, no agriculture, livestock and extractive industries, urban area being the area where residents derive substantial amounts of household income from non-rural economic activities focused on a particular town, city or group of cities; and urbanization being the process by which increasing proportion of a countrys people live within urban areas  [1]  . Ironically India is considered less urban as compared to many of the European countries but its acquaintance with urban settlements is extremely deep rooted. Urbanization is not a new concept for India. India has witnessed different phases of Urbanization since the Bronze Age. The first phase of urbanization began in the Indus valley where Harappan civilisations flourished between 2350 B.C. and 1500 B.C. Major towns of this civilization were Harappa, Mohenjordaro, Lothal, Surkotada, Rojdi (Gujarat), Kalibangan (Rajasthan), Banwali (Haryana) and Ropar (Punjab). Some of these towns are in Pakistan now. In the ancient period of Indian history many other towns flourished and declined at different points of time. During the Vedic period in the north and the Dravidian age in the South this process of urbanization continued and cities like Hastinapur, Mathura, Ayodhya, Kapilavastu, Kusinagar, Vaishali, Patliputra, Varanasi, Rajgir, Champa, Ujjain, Mahishamati, Nagarjunakonda, Kancheepuram, Puhar, Uraiuyur, Madurai, Korkai and Vanji fourished. In the Mauryan and Gupta periods waves of urbanization gripped Indian subcontinent and then as the law of nature prescribes left the scattered remains that still attract our attention. During the medieval period many other towns and big cities thrived and became cradle of art, culture and civilization. Making new cities with certain distinguished features was the passion that Delhi Sultans and mighty Mughal Badshahs nurtured on a grand scale. New capitals were made that still stand as the symbol of their lost glory. The cities which grew and flourished during this period are Ludhiana, Hisar, Bikaner, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Kota, Chittaurgarh, Moradabad, Agra, Jaunpur, Ahmedabad, Indore, Raipur, Aurdfcgabad, Ahmadnagar, Pune, Gulbarga, Bijapur, Vijaynagar, Hyderabad (Golcunda) and Mysore. Cities like Delhi which had a several phases of development and redevelopment till the time of British is a silent witness to the waves of urbanization that engrossed it from time to time. This practice of renovating the city of Delhi continued after Independence of India in 1947. The British East India Company after its arrival contributed remarkably to the urbanization process by creating three metropolitan part cities of Mumbai (Bombay), Kolkata (Calcutta) Chennai (Madras) and a chain of hill stations such as Shimla, Mussoori, Almora, Nainital, Darjeeling, Ooty, Kodaikanal, 85 many more. Besides, steps such as introduction of civil lines, cantonments, railways, modern industry and improvements in urban amnesties also strengthened the process of urbanization. Urbanization in India has progressed at different paces due to different reasons. Under the colonial rule it was stagnated due to the oppressive policies of the British. After gaining independence urban population in India has increased fivefold. However, the pattern of urbanization and pace at different places imitates the diversity of the Indian population. URBAN DEVELOPMENT AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT There are numerous factors, which might influence the urban structure of a country viz. history, topography, natural resources and climate etc. however, when it comes to explaining the location, size and growth of urban centers, economic factors turn out to be the most dominating ones. Historically, urbanization has been viewed as an important factor in the arena of economic change. Urbanization is intrinsically connected and irrevocably enlaced with the development process, as an essential strand in the contemporary economic system. Urbanization is considered as an essential part of a stronger and more stable economy. It helps in improving the living standards the people living all over the world. Urbanization is regarded as synonymous with the economic development. The countries in the South Asia that urbanised most rapidly in the latter years of the 20th century are those with the most rapid economic growth  [2]  . Most of the worlds largest cities are in the worlds largest economies. Cities and towns also have important roles as centres of artistic, scientific and technological innovation, and of culture and education. In the last half a century urban population in the world and specifically in Asia has increased leading to the conclusion that many people are getting diverted to non-agricultural works. Here is a table showing growth of urban population in the World, Asia and India:- We can calculate the average annual growth rate of the urban population to do a comparative analysis of the process of Urbanization all over the world. Lets have a look at the growth rate of urban development from 1970 to 2005. It is clear that India is not lagging behind in the race of urbanization inspite of suffering under the colonial rule for almost three centuries. Moreover we have to consider the fact that India is largely an agricultural country where a huge section of the population is employed in cultivation. This factor not only ensures our self sufficiency in food production but also solve the problem of employment to a great extent. Today India can boast of being emerged as a strong self sufficient nation even after suffering under the colonial rule for a long period. Not only India, but many other Asian countries have established themselves as strong independent nations that can not only sustain themselves but also supply valuable goods to the world. Although most of the Asian countries suffered under the colonial rule till the mid of the 20th century, in 1990, 17 of the 28 largest urban agglomerations in the world were located in Asia. Cities such as Beijing, Bombay, Calcutta, Jakarta, Seoul, Shanghai, Tianjin and Tokyo had a population of close to or above 10 million. Some of these cities even perform key functions in the global economy and are world class cities. China which is the fastest growing economy in the world has the capacity to surpass America and England in the near future. So also India which has registered GDP of more than 8 per year. In the table given below we can get a fair idea how number of metropolitan cities has been increasing in the Asian countries which are classed as third world countries by the powerful European and American nations. The United Nations estimates indicate that at mid 1990s, about 43 per cent of the world population lived in urban areas. With the urban population growing two and a half times faster than its rural counterpart, the level of urbanization is projected to cross the 50 per cent mark in 2005. United Nations projections further show that by 2025, more than three- fifth of the world population will live in urban areas (U. N. 1993). According to Dr. Bhagat, there are three components of urban growth viz., the natural increase, net migration and the areal classification i.e., addition of new towns minus declassification of existing towns. Besides the extension of boundaries of towns also tend to influence the urban growth  [3]  . However urbanization is closely related to the agricultural surplus and industrialisation. Only when the agricultural system was capable of producing a surplus it was possible to divert labour for other activities. Thus, the size of urban population was directly related to the efficiency of agricultural production. Agricultural revolution facilitated more people per square miles than hunting and food gathering societies. Settled agricultural villages led to teleological advances, which further led to the process of urban development. Gordan Childe lists the features, which define the urban revolution. They are:  [4]   a) Permanent settlements in dense aggregations, b) Non-agriculturists engaging in specialized functions, c) Taxation and capital accumulation, Public buildings, e) Trade and f) The replacement of kinship by residence at the basis for membership in the community. With the expansion in agricultural production labour can easily be directed towards other sectors of production viz. Non-agricultural vocations which lead to non-agrarian settlements. These settlements qualify to be called cities or urban areas. The expansion of non-agricultural activities comprise of industrial units. These units offer large number of vacancies which attract people to the cities leading to urbanisation. The urban growth rate is higher in agricultural states like Punjab and Haryana and states like Maharashtra and Karnataka as compared to rest of the country. The agricultural development, better farm productivity, rising farm income and limitation in absorption of labour force, all lead to urbanization  [5]  . The three great socio-economic revolutions i.e. the industrial revolution, the agrarian revolution and the transport revolution, sparked off another great revolution, the Urban revolution. While the industrial revolution necessitated urbanization, the agrarian and transport revolutions facilitated it. The tremendous improvements in the agrarian section helped industrialization and urbanization by supplying raw material and food. Nevertheless, this was not sufficient for there has to be a satisfactory movement of men and material between the industrial centers and other places. Thus, the hinterland of an industrial urban center depended upon the efficiency of the transport system. Finally, large-scale industrialization resulted in large concentration of production facilities and people.  [6]   Industrialization results in increased production and the increased production in turn leads to division of labour. The produce has to be transported from one place to another and put in the market. This requires means of transport, markets, godowns, shops etc. Therefore, wherever there is industrialization, a big labour force is needed.  [7]  In other words, industrialization is considered a very factor for urbanisation. After 1991 India has followed a policy of economic liberalisation. With this Indian economy is increasingly becoming global. With the emergence of industrial passage, the new telecom technology, super highway development and internet exposure, the urban scene in India is going through radical transformation. New job opportunities are opening up in the cities. Multinational companies are opening their franchises in Indian cities creating lots of job vacancies for the Indian professionals. This phenomenon is bound to accelerate the urbanisation of some of the metropolitan cities. However, there is embedded shortcoming in the process itself. Arrival of MNCs as these multinational companies are called, will convert some of the Indian cities into Mega cities but it will not bring a boom of urbanisation in India. Only some of the cities which already have better infrastructure and amenities will benefit from them. Whether we should take it as a benefit or not is also controversial. Because concentration of these units in some cities will create problems of housing, transport, water and power supply sewage etc. As Dr. Bhagat predicts, small cities will remain neglected and they will not benefit from this rapid industrialisation. Therefore, it will not be correct to think that urban growth and rural to urban migration will accelerate in future  [8]  . GROWTH OF URBAN POPULATION IN INDIA With only one tenth of her population classified as urban, India entered the twentieth country as under-urbanized. It was only after independence that urbanization started acquiring momentum. In absolute terms, there has been a phenomenon growth in urban population since Independence. Many of Indian urban cities are can compete with any of the cities in the world. Apart from four metropolitan cities viz. Delhi, Bombay or Mumbai, Calcutta or Kolkata and Madras or Chennai; many big cities like Hyderabad, Banglore, Ahmadabad, Hyderabad etc are attracting attention of international traders and entrepreneurs. During the period 1947-2001, urban population has increased from 50 Million to 285 Million i.e. 27.8 percent of Indias population lives in urban areas as per 2001 census. The degree of urbanization in India has moved from nearly 11 percent in 1901 to about 30 percent in 2001 i.e. approximately trebling, while the absolute urban population has gone up from nearly 26 to 285 Million i.e. increasing by more than 11 times during that period. The tempo of urbanization had not been uniform across different censual decades rather it has recorded uneven momentum during 1901-2000. In India out of the total population of 1027 Million as of 1st March, 2001, about 742 Million live in rural areas and 285 Million in urban areas. The net addition of population in rural areas during 1991-2001 has been to the tune of 113 Million while in urban areas it is 6 Million. The percentage decadal growth of population in rural and urban areas during the decade is 17,9 and 31.2 percent respectively. The percentage of urban population to the total population of the country stands at27.8. The percentage of urban population to total population in the 1991 Census (including interpol ated population of Jammu and Kashmir where Census could not be conducted in 1991) was 25.7 percent. Thus, there has been an increase on 2.1 percentage points in the proportion of urban population in the country during 1991-2001.  [9]   GROWTH OF URBAN POPULATION IN HARYANA The Urban population of Haryana was 52.36 lacs in 2001 and is expected 83.43 lacs in 2011. At present the total population of the State is 207.64 lacs and 28% of it live in the Urban areas which is higher then the India total urban population. The number of municipal areas would therefore, increase tremendously requiring rural areas to be declared as municipal areas.  [10]   SPECIALISED AGENCIES AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT Urban Planning and development, and provision of civic amenities such as water supply, and sewerage, prevention of pollution constitute some of the basic functions of urban local government. But our municipal institutions are alleged to be incapable of performing these functions. The state governments therefore constitute specialised agencies such as: (i) Improvement Trusts (ii) Housing Boards (iii) Water Supply Sewerage Boards (v) Pollution-Control Boards to carry out these functions. The specialized agencies or single purpose agencies are set up in addition to the existing urban local bodies to provide a specific service in their respective area. Their presence has been extremely beneficial and purposeful taking into account their contribution in urban development. The study of these specialised agencies, is highly essential to explore the possibilities of analysing their strengths and weaknesses to make them vital urban development institutions. HARYANA URBAN DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY (HUDA) Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA), a statutory body of Haryana Govt. was constituted under the Haryana Urban Development authority Act, 1977. The authority consists of a Chairman (Minister for Town Country Planning and Urban Estates Deptt.), a Vice Chairman (Chief Secretary to Govt., Haryana), Chief Administrator and such other members (not more than 12 but not less than 6) appointed under notification issued from time to time provided that the number of non-official members shall not, at anytime exceed three. The HUDA has various wings, like Urban Branch, Engineering, Town Planning and Architecture, Financial, Legal and Monitoring. The Chief Administrator at the Head-. Quarters is the overall incharge and responsible for discharging functions of the Authority assisted by four zonal Administrators, posted at Panchkula, Faridabad, Gurgon, Hisar and one Administrator at H.Q. The Chief Administrator is guided by the polices framed by the Authority headed by the Minister- in-ch arge (designated as the Chairman of the Authority) of the Town Country Planning Departments, under Section 8 of the HUDA Act, 1977.  [11]   REVIEW OF LITERATURE The literature on urbanization is available in published and unpublished form. This includes public documents, government resolutions, reports of commissions and committees, contribution in specialized journals, papers presented at various national and international seminars and conference, reports of study teams sponsored by various research institutions both in India and abroad. Datta has discussed the system of municipal organisation, municipal administrative processes, state- local relations, municipal finance, organizing and financing urban development, goals of urban planning, urban economic base, urban land values, urban housing, urban community development and grass-root politics as if prevailed in the Pre-74th Amendment period.  [12]   Sachdeva has pointed out that urban governments have been decaying. Their performance in providing civic amenities has been dismal. Their supersessions have been rampant. Eminent academicians and seasoned administrators in their respective contributions to this compendium of articles on various facets of urban government have analysed the causes of this phenomenon, chief among these being their 19th century structure, erosion of their powers by multiplicity of special purpose agencies, financial scarcity, lack of adequately qualified personnel, political interference etc. They have also made valuable suggestions for restructuring, rejuvenating and revamping the urban Government for rendering them into effective instruments-for grass-root democracy and agencies for development and planning and provision of basic civic services. They all are of the view that the implementation of Constitution (74th Amendment Act 1992) in letter and spirit will hopefully achieve the desired objectives t hrough its main provision of three tier municipal bodies, regular elections, independent state Election and Finance Commission, District Planning Committees etc.  [13]   Goel and Dhaliwal discussed the existing, emerging and future problems faced by Urban local self government and come out with constructive suggestions, which can make the life of the people in the city enjoyable in all aspects.  [14]   Ray in his book A Short History of Calcutta take up the city in legend, tradition and literature, from the British advent, inner structure of the fort, towns and suburbs, its population and the port, as well as its trade. However, the scope of these work is limited as far as the process of urbanization is concerned. They take up different aspects of urban history in isolation and do not cover the pattern and processes of urbanization in terms of variations over time. No attempt is made to underline these factors responsible for change either. Grewal in her articles The Pattern of Urbanization in the Punjab under Colonial Rule and her doctoral thesis on Urbanization in the Punjab is one of the few works done on the subject of urbanization. Prior to this work the studies related to the region have largely been concerned with individual centers like Amritsar, Sirhind, Patiala and Faridkot and have remained essentially biographical and narrative and as such restricted in scope. This work is a comprehensive study in the urban pattern, urban demography, urban morphology, urban functions and urban government. The scope of this work, however, is limited to the developments in the Pre-Independence Punjab.  [15]   Gosals two articles special reference to Punjab are of much relevance for our present study. In the first article the author studies spatial variations in the growth of urban population in each decade and the locational shifts in areas of urban development from decade to decade.  [16]  In the second article he establishes that the development in agriculture develops smaller towns while industrialization leads to the emergence of large cities or metropolitan areas. However, these studies touch the fringe of the problem of urbanization as these do not discuss in detail the urbanization process in all respects especially in southern region particularly, after the creation of Haryana. These also exclude the introduction of National Capital region scheme. The first article limits the study upto 1961 while the other goes upto 1981.  [17]   K. Prabha in her book Towns : A Structural Analysis: A case study of Punjab, find out measures to safeguard the urban dwellers from problems arising out of the growing population. It covers two important problems of the present Punjab state: a) It analyses the structure through the dimensions of demographic, industrial and linkage analysis; b) It identifies the hierarchy of Punjab towns. It analyses the town in area and the town as area. Sharma in his Research work, Urban Development in the metropolitan Shadow: A case study of Haryana has taken up a study of urban development in the town of Rohtak and its evolution with special reference to its growth after independence due to the resettlement of displaced person from West Punjab and its overall effect on the economic, social and cultural life of the town and its surroundings. He highlights those aspects which have been generated by its location being in close neighbourhood of the swelling metropolis of Delhi. This study identifies the linkage that exists between Rohtak and its surrounding areas. However, its scope is limited as it leaves out the study of other such towns in the State of Haryana.  [18]   Sinhas Processes and Patterns of Urban Development: A case study of Haryana is an attempt at analyzing and determining the possible processes of urban development which have been responsible for the spatial pattern of urban settlement in Haryana. It concentrates on population study, urban- rural relations and the working population. It also presents an analysis of physical growth and functional morphological zones of select urban places in Haryana. This world does not co-relate the factors that influences the processes of urbanization and excludes a comparative study of the urbanization in Haryana and Punjab. It also ignores the capital region scheme and its impact on the process of urbanization in Haryana.  [19]   Chapterisation: The second chapter in this study will focus on the Urban policy and Legislation of HUDA. Here we will discuss about the fundamentals of the urban policy of the Indian union in general and Haryana in particular. The formation of HUDA in 1977 through Haryana Urban Development authority Act, 1977 will be discussed in detail. The third chapter is the Organizational setup of HUDA where we will discuss the constitution of HUDA and the placement of different officials in different cadres. The actual physical set up of HUDA will be the focus of this chapter. The Fourth chapter is Physical and financial performance of HUDA where we will discuss about the actual performance of HUDA in leading Haryana towards urbanisation. The fifth chapter is Accountability of HUDA, where we will look at the responsibilities and liability of HUDA. Indian is a democratic country where all the governmental institutions are ultimately answerable to the public or the people of India if we want to use the constitutional term. The sixth chapter consists of concluding remarks of the study and Suggestions regarding suitable measures to make Haryana Urban Development Authority more efficient and accountable institution for urban development.

Saturday, January 18, 2020

Beginning The Audit Report Essay

I would like to thank you for vesting your company and trust in our firm to be your auditors. In this letter an explanation of the general terms and the process of our audit will be defined. This is only an educational purpose letter and is not an agreement. THE AUDIT PROCESS An audit is an examination and review of companies financial statements. The examination is performed with a view to portray an opinion of whether the companies financial statements prove a true and fair statues of the company. Auditing the activities of the company will be planned, executed properly and thoroughly reviewed to assure that all statements are in compliance with laws and regulations. The following is the process as to which our firm will be conducting the audit: We have a strict clientele screening process, once the screening process of  the company is concluded and confirms that you’re company is an acceptable client we will proceed with the next step in the process. Once the screening process is passed we might need to contact the companies previous auditor and have agreed consent from them to proceed. If the previous auditor does not consent or if your company does not allow us authority to contact he previous audit our firm will not perform the audit in your company. After all consents have been given there will be an audit engagement letter that will be issued to your company, which would represent the agreement between your company and our firm. The agreement would give the fundamental basic terms of the way the audit will be performed and what expectations of the firm and company will be. Once your company receives the engagement letter, all data will be collected from your company and the environment. The information collected will allow us to identify problem areas from prior audits. When all data is gathered we will complete a risk assessment of the company so that the best audit approach may be selected. For low risk companies we may test controls to analyze whether or not the companies internal controls are functioning followed by a smaller set of substantive testing. If the company is high risk your internal controls are weak, we would will rely heavily on substantive testing in order to make sure that there is no misstatements in the companies accounts. Whichever approach is chosen the analytical process during different parts of the audit will be the same. Once the main work is completed we will review the audited work and bring forth any issues to you that have risen from the audit work. When the issues are resolved (if any), the audit report will be issued. This would conclude our audit process on the companies accounts and statements for the year. Attached you will find other documents which will give you a better understanding of the audit process. Please if you have any questions please feel free to write to us. Thank you, The auditors. _Attachments:_ Engagement checklist Engagement letter Timeframes for the audit ENGAGEMENT CHECKLIST AUDIT YES/NO Introductory letter sent to client Screening process of client complete First meeting with client complete General issues were discussed with client Consent to contact previous auditor requested Detailed meeting with client discussing engagement terms held Letter of engagement sent to client Changes to scope made (if any) Letter received by client and accepted Audit timetable copy sent to client ENGAGEMENT LETTER To: Directors of Apollo Shoes. This letter serves as representation that we will act as auditors for Apollo Shoes, therefore responsibility of the company and our firm in all respected areas of the audit. MANAGEMENT RESPONSIBILITY FOR FINANCIAL STATEMENTS Responsibility of preparation and accurate presentation of the financial statements in accordance with IFRS and SFAS will be held by management. The respected responsibility includes: Appropriate accounting policies should be selected and applied Internal controls relevant to the preparing and presenting financial statements should be designed and implemented. Financial reports should be free from misstatements. Accounting estimates should be made to a reasonable and circumstantial amount (Apra, 2009). AUDITOR’S RESPONSIBILITY Our firm’s responsibility is to give the company an opinion on the financial statements that are presented to us based on our audit findings. We will review all data collected and ascertain that information and work is in compliance with statutes, regulations, GAAP, SFAS, and IFRS. We will also ascertain that the data is in compliance with the code of ethics for professional auditors (Apra, 2009). Audit will include the review and examination of all figures and facts on a test basis. Due to the nature of the test there may still be a risk that some misstatements will go undiscovered. In order to reduce risk we encourage and need Apollo to provide and make necessary arrangements relating to the execution of the audit. Our firm will require unrestricted access to all records, documentation and all information requested by our firm. Any representation that the company makes in connection to the audit will be expected to be confirmed and in writing. When the firm feels that there is sufficient work reviewed and completed by the auditors to establish an opinion, the firm will issue and audit report. The report will be given to the company if all issues and circumstances brought forth by the auditors is resolved by the company. FEE AND OTHER ISSUES The firms fee will be charged on a fixed amount of $12,000 plus an additional hourly wage based on the number of hours worked by the firms staff on your companies audit engagement. This additional fee will vary depending on the level of seniority the individual has and time spent. Our firm will issue a management letter, which will focus on the companies weaknesses in the internal control system, which arose from the audit. This letter is a professional courtesy letter and is not a part of the audit. Please sign this letter and send it back to us. Once signed, this letter will represent the confirmation of the terms of engagement. This letter will remain effective until the letter is superseded, canceled or amended. Sincerely, Auditors On behalf of directors: Signature: __________________________________ TIMEFRAMES FOR THE AUDIT AUDIT DATE COMPLETED DATE REVIEWED Gathering of knowledge about client: Industry stats Product range Markets operated Key customers Key suppliers Competitors Risk assessment Initial analytical procedures Key evaluation of audit approach Selection basis of samples Testing receivables Testing and checking inventory Testing payables Testing long-term liabilities Testing capital and other shareholders’ funds Testing and verifying non-current assets Verification of cash and bank details Final analytical review Review of post balance sheet events Application of accounting standards Audit finalization Issue of audit report References Arens, A.A., Elder, R.J., & Beasley, M.S. (2012). _Auditing and Assurance Services_ (14th ed.). Upper Saddle River , NJ: Prentice Hall.FASB. (2014). Apra. (2009). _Auditor Report._ Retrieved from http://www.apra.gov.au/Superannuation/upload/AuditReport_Vn2-Sept.pdf

Friday, January 10, 2020

UK’s Barclaycard and the Need to Outsource

In the 21st there are two terms that keep on buzzing in the headlines: globalization and global telecommunications. These two are related because if technology continues to improve then the whole planet goes high-tech – each person beginning to realise that the world is shrinking and every year or so improvements in mobile communications, the Internet and the proliferation of wireless devices makes it easier to communicate with one another. One major implication of technology change is a concept called outsourcing.This idea is nothing new but UK’s Barclaycard is just one of the many global corporations that acknowledges the need to outsource. But it is not as simple as that, Barclaycard had to make a difficult decision, to choose between two places where they can outsource a portion of their operations – whether to ship some of their work to India or the Philippines. Overview According to Richard Bolin, Director of The Flagstaff Institute, Flagstaff, Arizona, USA , the phenomenon of outsourcing is nothing new and even as early as 20 years ago there are industrialised countries who made the connection between outsourcing and profitability:Japan intentionally got rid of sewing factories to Southeast Asia by 1981. They couldn’t waste their precious labour supply on low value sewing operations. This is what outsourcing is all about. If a company does not outsource, it will die. And if its country does not find new industries to replace the inefficient ones, it will not attract new investment and better jobs. Everybody has to understand this (Bolin). Bolin is just one of many business leaders that place their faith in outsourcing and believing that this strategy is not a threat to the nation’s economy.In the long run it will benefit the economy because it will create a very efficient system where the following positive outcomes can be expected (Brown, 2005): †¢ Increase sales opportunities †¢ Prevent missed opportunities à ¢â‚¬ ¢ Reduce annual costs almost immediately †¢ Enable business to focus on core competencies †¢ Reduce or eliminate customer complaints †¢ Increase customer loyalty In a nutshell, outsourcing is the obtaining of services from an external source, outside the company.A more technical definition uses the term Business process outsourcing (BPO), â€Å"†¦BPO occurs when an organisation turns over the management of a particular business process such as accounting or payroll †¦ the underlying theory is that the BPO firm can complete the process more efficiently† (Brown, 2005). It is easy to comprehend that if global corporations fail to figure out the beauty of outsourcing then they will be left behind by their competitors.They will eat the dust left behind by those who were able to grasp the idea that allowing others to do low value operations is the future of effective business management. It is similar to hiring a driver to do the more redundant work of driving in order to free up the CEO to do more important tasks. The positive feedback is the main reason why business process outsourcing is such a hot topic in the world today. But it does not mean that everything will turn out to be great whenever a company decides to outsource part of its operations overseas.There are obviously so many things to consider. Each case must be treated separately and a thorough analysis of the operation, the core values of the company as well as pertinent information regarding the outsourcing destination must be considered prior to the decision to shut down one portion of the operations component of the firm and outsource it outside the country. Barclaycard UK A casual overview of companies that decided to outsource part of their operations overseas will reveal that most of them have a common denominator.These companies are either in the manufacturing industry or it is a business that relies heavily on Information Technology. Those in manufacturing w ill find the conditions in China particularly attractive because of the availability of cheap labour as well as the competitive costs of building and maintaining factories. Those in need of IT personnel will turn to India simply because this is a nation where there is a relatively high concentration of English speaking people that are at the same time tech-savvy and many are knowledgeable about current trends in the IT sector (Pogson, 2008).Barclaycard is one European powerhouse that could not afford not to outsource. Barclaycard is part of the Barclays Group a conglomerate that can be found in the United Kingdom. It is Europe’s largest multi-brand credit card and also provides other forms of consumer lending businesses. Barclaycard continues to lead the way in Europe and according to their official press release they are the most recognized brand in UK with over 10 million retail customers.But they are still expanding – there are currently 8. 8 million credit cards in issue outside the UK and the firm also maintains operations in over fifty countries and four continents. According to another expert, outsourcing is unavoidable and yet he cautions that it must be likened to a journey, requiring adequate planning and coordination (Pogson, 2008). This is especially true for Barclaycard. It is not an ordinary firm responsible for the manufacture of cheap products.It is a company that handles a very important aspect of European business which is the issuance of credit cards and various lending services. In other words this is a type of business that requires high level thinking and performed by not only the most technically proficient people in the planet but also those that have the highest integrity. There are three possible destinations if Barclaycard decides to outsource part of their least important operations outside the country there are three possible candidates: India, Philippines, and the Republic of Ireland.Considering first the Republic of Ireland, it is easy to gauge that it will not be as cost-effective as transferring the operations to India or the Philippines. The only possible advantage is that the Republic of Ireland is culturally similar to the UK and the English speaking inhabitants will never pose a problem in terms of communication. But other than these two considerations, it is doubtful if Ireland can compete in terms of outsourcing rates when comparing the wages of workers in Europe to those in Asia. Considering India It is not hard to put India on top of the list.There are many advantages of using the skilled workforce of India to tackle the outsourcing needs of Barclaycard. According to finance experts at Moody’s, â€Å"India will remain a top outsourcing destination because of its tech-savvy and English-proficient urban workforce whose wages are much lower than their western counterparts† (Moody’s Investors Service, 2009). The nation has a population of more than one billion people . From this number there are millions of educated English speakers entering the workforce each year (Kobayashi-Hillary, 2004).The Indian workforce provides a compelling argument as to why Barclaycard should outsource to India. Trevor Foster-Black is the managing director of Coalition Development, a UK research company that provides information to recruitment firms and he remarked that their company uses researchers from India to structure and format data and he adds, â€Å"It would be very difficult to find such high-calibre people to do similar work in London †¦ They arrive at 4am our time and everything’s finished by the time we arrive† (Kobayashi-Hillary, 2004).It is truly amazing to realise that the location of India can be a source of another advantage; in essence Barclaycard’s operations can be sustained 24 hours a day and seven days a week due to the time differences. If Barclaycard will use the same strategy in their UK offices they would incur sign ificant costs in terms of payroll alone. One can only imagine the numbers that will be generated by overtime and other costs related to keeping an operation functioning round the clock.But if they will outsource to India, the executives at the UK headquarters can send part of their workload to their people in India and they can work while the executives are going to bed. This ensures that workflow is not interrupted and therefore Barclaycard can achieve cost-efficiency very quickly. If Barclaycard will outsource all of its call centres to India then the same level of efficiency and cost savings can be expected. The English speaking workforce in India will ensure that credit card holders can be assured of easy access to customer representatives 24/7 wherever they are in the world.The low outsourcing rates in India will also allow Barclaycard to maintain a 24 hour cycle operations without downtime and therefore Barclaycard is just a phone call away whenever a customer encountered prob lems with their credit cards. Barclaycard will definitely find it worthwhile to invest in India but globalization as well as rapid development in technology can create weakness out of strength. This means that India can be a victim of its own success. According to one commentary there are two issues that concerns would be investors: 1) security; and 2) the unravelling of a top IT service provider, Satyam.These problems are forcing European companies to create more geographically dispersed portfolio of IT outsourcing providers (Overby, 2009). India is bordered by Pakistan on one side and one only has to remember Pakistan’s association with extremists groups to understand the spate of terrorist attacks in India. It is high time therefore to consider an alternative and a quick glance at Asia will reveal that there is none better than the Philippines. Considering the Philippines There are many advantages in choosing this country as a BPO destination and these are listed as follow s:1. Outsourcing rates are low and can easily compete with those of India; 2. Transportation such as flights coming from the Western hemisphere is arguably better than other Asian countries; 3. It is culturally compatible with the United States because it was a U. S. commonwealth in the early 20th century up to 1946; 4. English is widely spoken and can be considered as the second national language; and 5. The most successful outsourcing engagements in this country are for call centres (Mezak, 2006).If seems that both countries are evenly matched in many aspects pertaining to BPO. The Philippines can boast of a highly-skilled workforce considering that it has one of the highest literacy rates in Asia, even higher than India. The only reason that India can offer more tech-savvy workers is due to the fact that there are a billion people in India while the Philippines has only less than one hundred million people. But in the English department both countries can provide excellent servic e.When the Americans came to this nation in the early part of the 20th century the country was exposed to world class education systems and even if the Americans left in the middle of the 20th century the Filipinos were able to adapt and they were able to create a system that can produce top calibre graduates annually. But there is one problem with the Philippines, â€Å"†¦it is the lack of skilled project management and experience with large software development projects †¦ it is easier to find body shops offering programmers than vendors with well-structured and well-managed teams of programmers† (Mezak, 2006).This is where India has a clear advantage over this tiny island nation. Yet, again the Philippines will not give up that easily, based on a 2007 report, Barclaycard already closed its call centre in Manchester and since the Philippines excelled in this type of business process outsourcing then it must be considered as a future destination of Barclaycard†™s call centres. Conclusion Without a doubt, outsourcing is a must if a global conglomerate hopes to stay competitive in the 21st century.If one considers outsourcing, there are three things will easily come to mind, cost-efficiency, cost-efficiency and more cost-efficiency. There is no executive in this planet that will pass up the opportunity to streamline operations and make more money in the process while retaining customer loyalty through the creation of customer friendly operations. With globalisation comes wage increase and various overhead costs that can easily force a company to bankruptcy if excess fat is not trimmed down.Instead of reducing the size of the company it is much better to outsource. With the advent of modern technology and the efficiency of 21st century transportation services it is easy to do business on a global scale. Barclaycard is just one of the many European powerhouses eager to outsource and there are three destinations: the Republic of Ireland, the Philippines and India. The Republic of Ireland already dropped out of contention considering that it is located in Europe and logic dictates that competitive outsourcing rates can only be found in Asia.Considering the fact that Barclaycard is into the credit card business and that outsourcing requirements entails the capability to provide English speaking and tech-savvy personnel there are only two remaining contestants bidding for the rich rewards of outsourcing contracts – India and the Philippines. At first glance it seems that India is the best choice for Barclaycard. This is because India has already proven itself in the BPO business especially in the IT sector which is a major requirement for Barclaycard.It boasts of English speaking and tech savvy personnel that can easily handle communication needs of the said UK firm. Moreover, if there is a need for programmers, the ability to communicate with English speaking Indian programmers are a definite advantage as compared to the hassle when communicating with programmers from other countries with poor English proficiency. There are other non-tangible advantages for India. While the Philippines was under the control of the American in the early part of the 20th century, India was for many centuries under the hegemony of Great Britain.If the Filipinos were heavily influenced by American culture, Indians were heavily influenced by British culture. As many will know there is quite a difference between U. S. English and U. K. English. If this is an important consideration for Barclaycard’s outsourcing needs then India will win hands down. If one combines this with the technical capabilities of Indian workers then this combination of factors will be very difficult to beat. On the other hand India has its share of weaknesses. India is suffering from a bad image following the debacle of Satyam, one of India’s top IT providers.The scandal that hounds Satyam will easily make future investors une asy with the idea that they are placing all their eggs in one basket. If this is combined with the recent spate of terrorist attacks then capital flight will most likely follow. If there are less investors willing to invest then India’s IT infrastructure will not be upgraded and more bad news will follow. The security threat is also serious because outsourcing is a strategy with inherent risks and yet CEOs are willing to beat the odds with the promise of profitability and efficiency.But if terrorist attacks will continue then there is a chance that operations can be affected. Barclaycard could not afford to lose one day of inactivity due to security problems. It is therefore logical to consider the Philippines as an alternative. It is also a nation blessed with English speaking and tech savvy personnel. Furthermore, the Philippines is lagging behind India thus it will remain competitive with its outsourcing rates to attract more customers and investors. If Barclaycard will ch oose the Philippines then it can expect more savings and therefore increase the satisfaction of key investors.On the other hand the Philippines is not yet ready to wrest the crown away from India. The debate will never end. There are strengths and weaknesses for both countries but it seems that Barclaycard has spoken. Two years ago Barclaycard made an important decision, â€Å"Barclaycard will move some of its operations to India following the announcement it is to close its Manchester call centre this summer† (Ferguson, 2007). While the Philippines is also strong in the call centre industry, India can provide something that is beyond the grasp of the Philippines.It is a country that is culturally similar to the United Kingdom and therefore the Indians are more adept with UK English as compared to the Filipinos. Furthermore, India was once under the domain of Great Britain and therefore Indian laws and their current legal system closely mirrors that of the UK and so for Barcl aycard it can be argued that it is easier to do business in India as compared to the Philippines. References Brierley, S. (2005). The Advertising Handbook. UK: Routledge. Buttle, F. (1996). Relationship Marketing. UK: Paul Chapman Publishing, Ltd. Brown, D.(2005). The Black Book of Outsourcing How to Manage the Changes, Challenges, and Opportunities. New Jersey: Wiley & Sons, Inc. Ferguson, T. (2007). â€Å"Barclaycard Closes Call Centre, Offshores to India. † CBS Interactive Retrieved 09 March 2009 from http://services. silicon. com/ offshoring/0,3800004877,39166239,00. htm Kobayashi-Hillary, M. (2004). Outsourcing to India. Germany: Springer-Verlag. Mezak, S. (2006). Software Without Borders. California: Earthrise Press. Moody's Investor's Service. (2009). â€Å"India to Remain Among Top Outsourcing Destinations: Moodys.† Retrieved 09 March 2009 from The Economic Times. http://economictimes. indiatimes. com/Infotech/ITeS/India-to-remain-among-top- outsourcing- destin ations-Moodys/rssarticleshow/4241062. cms Overby, S. (2009). â€Å"Philippines Looks Beyond the Call Center for Future Outsourcing Growth. † Retrieved 09 March 2009 from CIO Magazine http://www. cio. com/article/483178/Philippines_Looks_Beyond_the_Call_Center_for_Fut ure_Outsourcing_Growth Pogson, I. (2008). Outsourcing from the UK to the Far East. In Outsourcing and Human Resource Management R. Taplin (Ed. ). UK: Routledge

Thursday, January 2, 2020

Graduation Speech College And Pursue A College Degree

In America, some go to college and pursue a college degree. With a college degree you can do a lot of things. Also, generally speaking obtaining a college degree will get you a job that would make more money than a job without a degree. Making more money leads to better quality of life in America because of the many different doors that open up for you and your family, also it allows have you have some extra money to spend. In America, college is expensive, and leaves a very large number of students leaving college with a lot of debt. Student debt is something that often times is being paid off for most of their life. Some people see this as a problem and other see it as a system that is working but with issues. After the recent 2016†¦show more content†¦In America, it is Win-lose situation for going to college, you need the degree to get a better life for yourself. However, if you go you leave with long term debt and if you don’t go it limits your job opportunities and an opportunity for a better life. This is a part of the system that America has built for higher education for its citizens. The cost of college is rising and making it harder and harder for people to afford. It has now become a big issue in America. â€Å"The mother of all problems in higher education today is high tuition at public colleges and universities, which forces students into decades of debt†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (Wiener) Tuition has risen dramatically over the years and it is hurting graduated students and incoming students in different ways. Future students have to deal with paying high costs and graduated or past students have to deal with the student debt long after school. For example, the University of California cost to attend is so much that it actually forced students who couldn’t afford it to choose a different school. (Wiener) This is a problem that is common with high school grads that can’t afford high tuition rates. This is where some think that the educational system is unfair and where it doesn’t work. According to Jon Wiener, tuition free would drive out for-profit schools and it would help because, â€Å"For profit colleges represent predatory capitalism at itsShow MoreRelatedThe Importance Of College Education975 Words   |  4 Pagesschool graduation is what counts when you go out looking to make a career for yourself. Going into the start of high school parents, teachers, counselors, and many other administrators prep you for the path you need to take to college. An education that is beyond your senior of high school can be very beneficially to shaping your life and helping with many accomplishments you wish to have. A college education is something that shapes and helps develop you into an adult. Hence, going to college can helpRead MoreRhetorical Analysis Of Steve Jobs Speech848 Words   |  4 Pagesbecause of how they connect with the audience. Steve Job’s speech during the Stanford’s grad uation was inspiring to many of the college graduates. Many people think in order to be successful a college degree is mandatory. Even if they do not like what they are doing. People should love what they do, and should not follow dogma. With his speech, Steve Job’s convinced the multicultural population at Stanford University to be prominent and to pursue their passion by relying on three personal stories inRead MoreWalden University And My Future802 Words   |  4 PagesI am finally at the end of my journey and my graduate degree from Walden University is almost in my hand. Walden has asked me to give a speech at the graduation ceremony. When I was asked to do this, I was not sure what I would say. I spent some time thinking about my past year at Walden, and all of the things that I learned. I went from not knowing what to say when I was originally asked to having an abundance of things I could say about Walden. My future is bright thanks to Walden UniversityRead Mor eCollege And The Inherent Expectations879 Words   |  4 PagesCollege and the Inherent Expectations Unbeknownst to its Participants Although some speak of college serving only as a stepping-stone into a career, the intended outcomes and goals of this four-year institution reach much farther. These objectives provide for a more fulfilling experience overall, but are seldom spoken of in the classroom. By pursuing a university degree, students sign into a contract laced with expectations – expectations of civic responsibility, public service, and participationRead MoreWhat is the Purpose of College? Essay example1366 Words   |  6 PagesA college education gives a person the opportunity to be successful in life, either financially or morally dependent on the goals that they set for their life. They will choose a college that offer programs for the major of their choice, where they will specialize and receive a degree. The decision to pursue a higher education will give the opportunity to earn a better income over someone who does not have a degree. College is more of life preparation course that will help m ake sure a successfulRead MoreGraduation Speech - Original Writing992 Words   |  4 Pagesare there after me. Graduation was one of the better days of my young life. If you haven’t figured it out, I was not a fan of high school. They couldn’t pay or beg me enough to teach at any high school here in the county, hence why I am teaching at the middle school level, as my middle school days were sadly, the best days of school I ever had. I was miserable all three of the years that I spent here, the fourth where I left classes here to pursue community college instead as even that was betterRead MoreThe Importance Of A Career Education1189 Words   |  5 PagesCollege is a costly but worthwhile endeavor that any high school graduate should strive for. But the question on most high school graduates minds is about what to study in college and dedicate the rest of there life to. Many students pursue a liberal education or a career education in college. In my opinion a career education is an important use of a college education because it is more applicable than a liberal arts educa tion in a job setting in todays capitalist society.      Ã‚  Ã‚   Many people assumeRead MoreWhy Education Is Not An Economic1398 Words   |  6 PagesWhy Education is Not an Economic Panacea 1. What arguments is Marsh making about the relationship between inequality and education in the United States? How does he distinguish his position from other common arguments about the degree to which education, especially higher eduction, can or cannot serve as a panacea for social ills in this or other countries? Marsh is saying that education is not the way to fix low income and poverty. It is the other way around, to improve educational services forRead MoreWhy I Am An Engineer926 Words   |  4 Pageswith data management knowledge, analytical capability and problem-solving skills. I, Bhaskar Nayak am an Engineer in Information Science from Sapthagiri College of Engineering, a reputed institution under Visvesvaraya Technological University. I am applying for the admission to Master’s program in Business Intelligence and Analytics. The goal to pursue a career in the field of business has always been part of my plans since my early teen years. I believe that the interest I possess leads to continuousRead MoreThe Debt That Affects Young Students1270 Words   |  6 Pageshopes of joining a college. Sadly, for countless students, they remain financially unable to receive the education they need. I propose that you consider Bernie Sander’s introduced bill â€Å"College for All Act†. You have recognized the crippling debt that affects young students, and even launched a plan making low interest rate grants and loans available. You’ve shared how you believe that college is where people pursue their dreams, on the other hand, paying more for college is in fact pressing