Establishing a New Recruitment Interview Process using Business Assignment - 1

Establishing a New Recruitment Interview Process using Business Modeling Software - Assignment Example This assignment focuses on the description of the preparation of procedures manual that entails certain stages and specific processes that encompass writing a preliminary outline, drafting the proposal, designing a brochure, detailing the preparation plan, and ultimately coming out with the final procedures manual. The researcher explaines the process of developing of the manual through the various stages. First one enhances awareness on the intricate details and elements of design that need to be incorporated in the final outcome to ensure that the proposed manual serves its purpose. The procedures manual created in the assignment and containing all the crucial elements from all the diverse stages of literary work and design is presented. The manual is for are HR personnel, the potential candidates of the proposed software for the recruitment interview process. In addition, the role of human resources facilitator, in the capacity of the HR manager, is crucial as the person identifie d to interpret and analyze the results and to recommend screened candidates for possible positions in the organization. The implementation of the software program that would enhance recruitment process required the clear and accurate identification of major procedures for the potential users. To conclude, the researcher states that this procedures manual created in the assignment presents the manual overview and solution, the detailed procedural requirements, the benefits to the users, and finally, the author’s information.

Yoredale Group (Wensleydale Group) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Yoredale Group (Wensleydale Group) - Essay Example (Crain, Spec2000.net). Yoredale Group refers to sediments deposited and first studied in Wensleydale,North Yorkshire. Imagine a combination of layers of sedimentary rocks wherein the lowest level consists of limestone, followed by mudstone, then sandstone, seatearth, and coal. The most commonly observed is the limestone. It is not pure limestone. Instead, clay is found along with linestone in the Yoredale Group, and the impurities (like fragments of fossils) make the limestone look dark gray. But in terms of thickness of sediments, limestone makes up only a small portion of the total sedimentary rock thickness. Oftentimes, carbon is absent in the piles of sediments. Three sediment formations were identified in the Yoredale Group, namely, â€Å"the Tyne Limestone Formation, the Alston Formation, and the Stainmore Formation† starting from the bottom to the top. Waters, C.N., Dean, M.T.,, Jones, N.S., and Somerville, I.D. ([a] 1) identify Yoredale Group as the Northumberland Trou gh which has â€Å"facies deposits† connected â€Å"southward into the relatively deeper water†. However, the Yoredale Group â€Å"extends across the entire Solway Basin and Northumberland Trough† (3). ... Out of that length of time, the available rock analysis technology can compute the estimated time when events took place based on the findings on rocks. Only 440 million years can be traced in the rocks themselves. Up in the north of England, one can find the â€Å"junction between two ancient continents that were once separated by a vast ocean† (Hyslop et. al. 18). It is known as the Lapetus Suture. And the ocean existed 500 million years ago covering 1000 kilometers. There was a continent (named Laurentia) wherein Scotland, Northern England, and North and West Ireland were part of the south eastern boundaries of that continent. The other parts of England came from changes in the tectonic rock formations beneath the ocean, causing the continents of Avalonia and Laurentia to collide. Geologiests identified the mountains of Caledonia as results of that collision. It took place 425 million years ago during the Paleaozoic Era. This should be seen not as an instant event but a ver y gradually evolutionary change in the earth’s structures. Mountains were built by the folding of the ocean floor, â€Å"cleaved and uplifted the rocks during the event termed Caledonian Oregeny† (20). New volcanoes came into existence. Another book wrote about the Paleozoic Era as having lasted for 300 million years when movements of the â€Å"Earth’s continents from the Southern Hemisphere to the Northern Hemisphere† took place (Rafferly 29). In the description of Laurentia, the author identified the greater part of that ancient continent as today’s â€Å"North America and Greenland† (33). It also describes the Caledonian Orogeny to have formed â€Å"a mountain chain stretching from present-day eastern North America

Econometrics Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Econometrics - Assignment Example Frequently Box and Jenkin’s is an iterative method and there may be competing candidates to describe a series. To achieve stationarity or remove trend two techniques are usually applied. The first one involves fitting either a parametric model or a spline function. In this case the ARMA model is applied to the residuals. Alternatively, Box and Jenkins recommended taking suitable differences of the process to achieve stationarity. Here the assumption is that the original series is ARIMA and the difference gives rise to the ARMA series. To determine whether the series has been reduced to a stationary series, one may look at the autocorrelations. For a stationary series, the autocorrelation sequence would converge to 0 quickly as lag increases. The time plot given in Figure 2 is already a stationary series as there is no evidence of any trend. Both autocorrelation plot and partial autocorrelation plot need to be looked at simultaneously. The partial autocorrelation become 0 at lag p+1 or greater when the process is AR(p). Strictly speaking the largest PAC is at lag 2 and the second largest at lag 24. These are the only two significant partial autocorrelations. When consider the ACF at lag 24, no significance is noted. However at lag 16 ACF is significant, but no corresponding significance is noted in PACF. The two components of the observation vector y, the predicted part X ÃŽ ²-hat, and the residual y - X ÃŽ ²-hat are orthogonal. They are uncorrelated and since they follow multivariate normal distribution, they are also independent. Any function of the predicted random vector and any function of the residual vector will also be independently distributed. Using (9) and (12) given in Lecture 5 and using the result that ratio of two independent chi-square variables divided by their respective degrees of freedom, follows an F distribution with proper d.f. the F-statistic for testing parameter of linear regression

Yoredale Group (Wensleydale Group) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Yoredale Group (Wensleydale Group) - Essay Example (Crain, Spec2000.net). Yoredale Group refers to sediments deposited and first studied in Wensleydale,North Yorkshire. Imagine a combination of layers of sedimentary rocks wherein the lowest level consists of limestone, followed by mudstone, then sandstone, seatearth, and coal. The most commonly observed is the limestone. It is not pure limestone. Instead, clay is found along with linestone in the Yoredale Group, and the impurities (like fragments of fossils) make the limestone look dark gray. But in terms of thickness of sediments, limestone makes up only a small portion of the total sedimentary rock thickness. Oftentimes, carbon is absent in the piles of sediments. Three sediment formations were identified in the Yoredale Group, namely, â€Å"the Tyne Limestone Formation, the Alston Formation, and the Stainmore Formation† starting from the bottom to the top. Waters, C.N., Dean, M.T.,, Jones, N.S., and Somerville, I.D. ([a] 1) identify Yoredale Group as the Northumberland Trou gh which has â€Å"facies deposits† connected â€Å"southward into the relatively deeper water†. However, the Yoredale Group â€Å"extends across the entire Solway Basin and Northumberland Trough† (3). ... Out of that length of time, the available rock analysis technology can compute the estimated time when events took place based on the findings on rocks. Only 440 million years can be traced in the rocks themselves. Up in the north of England, one can find the â€Å"junction between two ancient continents that were once separated by a vast ocean† (Hyslop et. al. 18). It is known as the Lapetus Suture. And the ocean existed 500 million years ago covering 1000 kilometers. There was a continent (named Laurentia) wherein Scotland, Northern England, and North and West Ireland were part of the south eastern boundaries of that continent. The other parts of England came from changes in the tectonic rock formations beneath the ocean, causing the continents of Avalonia and Laurentia to collide. Geologiests identified the mountains of Caledonia as results of that collision. It took place 425 million years ago during the Paleaozoic Era. This should be seen not as an instant event but a ver y gradually evolutionary change in the earth’s structures. Mountains were built by the folding of the ocean floor, â€Å"cleaved and uplifted the rocks during the event termed Caledonian Oregeny† (20). New volcanoes came into existence. Another book wrote about the Paleozoic Era as having lasted for 300 million years when movements of the â€Å"Earth’s continents from the Southern Hemisphere to the Northern Hemisphere† took place (Rafferly 29). In the description of Laurentia, the author identified the greater part of that ancient continent as today’s â€Å"North America and Greenland† (33). It also describes the Caledonian Orogeny to have formed â€Å"a mountain chain stretching from present-day eastern North America

Multicultural Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Multicultural Management - Essay Example The combination of work force demographics in the work place has been as result of increased globalization in business which has placed the management of cultural and background differences one of the leading agenda in modern times in many corporate organization. This has been due to increased heterogeneity in gender, race, ethnicity, and nationality due to mix up of people. (Vonslid, 2006) To the organization, this has an advantage of better and quicker decision making, higher creativity and innovation in the work, remarkable success in marketing in foreign communities and countries and also equal distribution of economic opportunities. However, if not well handled, it can lead to increased cost due to high turnover rates, conflicts due to interpersonal differences, and breakdown in communications. The hospitality industry is one of the industries that have a high mixture of people both in customers and in the work force. The diversity in the hospitality industry has been one of the challenges facing many firms in the industry since their survival is based on the quality of services that is offered to the customers. Diversity in the industry is also important due to the diverse customers that it serves. Hence a diverse workforce in the industry will help to serve diverse customers who are served in the industry. Managing this diverse workforce in the industry is poses a challenge in the industry's human resource department. This paper will explore the strategies that can be used by the human resource department in the industry to successfully handle the diverse work force. Multicultural workforce in the hospitality industry The hospitality industry is one of the growing industry industries in the world. Increased globalization and increased outsourcing of businesses has been one of the driving forces in the growth of the industry. The industry has been growing at a rate of 12 percent in the most countries in the world. Due to the increased growth of the industry, there has been increased movement of people from different parts of the world who have been seeking employment in the industry. This has led to increased diversity within the work place with more and more people mingling. This diversity has been posing various challenges to human resource management department in most firms as enhancing the diversity of the work force to work as a system has become difficult and challenging. The work of the human resource department is to ensure the all workers are treated as equals regardless of their background. As a result, there have been efforts by the human resource department to come up with various strategies that are earmarked to streamline the operations of the diversity to enhance the working of the firms as a system. The hospitality industry like others can be grouped into three categories as far as cultural diversity is concerned. The first category can be termed as monolithic organizations which are characterized

The Crucible by Arthur Miller Essay Example for Free

The Crucible by Arthur Miller Essay The Crucible by Arthur Miller, is set in 1692, on the Salem witch trials and compared with McCarthyism in 1950s, the time it was written. The Crucible is a fictional retelling of events in American history surrounding the Salem witch trials of the seventeenth century, yet it is as much a product of the time in which Miller wrote it, the early 1950s, as it is a description of a Puritan society. I will be describing my ideas on the performance and the production of the asides in act one of The Crucible. One of the main motives of asides is to explain the similarities in 1690s and1950s. The Crucible is a story with an underlying meaning as well as the literal one. Although 1690s and 1950s are very different, Miller has portrayed the same allegory. Miller is trying to prove that history repeats itself. He does this by proving that people were stupid to believe in witches in the seventeenth century, just like people believed in McCarthyism in America in the 1950s. Today we are repeating similar mistakes, as we consider war as the solution to the Iraq crisis. Getting the message across to audience is very hard as it is no longer 1950s nor do people know much about McCarthyism. During the 1690s Puritans also repressed in England and power then was held by Church, theocracy, those who were landowners held a lot of power. Cromwell had taken power by junta. At that time Salem was in a state of unrest because the old laws were no longer as necessary. Witch-hunting was also causing unrest in Salem. The crisis, of witchcraft, began to increase and doubts began to develop concerning the vitality of the charge. Just like in America the educated people of the colony began efforts to end the witch-hunting hysteria that had surrounded Salem. To explain this complicated allegory successfully, asides are used. 1950s was a decade of unrest in America as there were a lot of economical depressions following world war two, democracy and capitalism problems. More over McCarthy was troubling people by misusing his powers. The hunting down and prosecuting of any Americans who were thought to have taken part in anti-capitalism. The accusations became hysterical and many people were asked to name names of people in meeting held many years previously. By 1962 many people started going against McCarthy. Miller uses the Salem witch-hunt to present his views on McCarthyism, The prosecuting of any Americans who were thought to have taken part in anti-capitalism, is similar to the hunting down of suspects of witchcraft. The asides are a very effective way of telling long story in short. The narrator may explain the situations, introduce new characters or even give his own opinion to get the message across to the audience. The narrator is particularly needed for Act 1, as the setting and different characters need to be introduced to audience. Another reason why asides are important to be narrated is, the allegory in the story for which the audience needs to follow the story right from the beginning. Therefore it is vital that the narrator of the aside is someone, who the audience is likely to pay attention to. Ideally a literate person who can judge people correctly and has the power to catch the audiences attention with his voice. I think its a good idea if the narrator is one of the charters from the play. Having one of the characters to narrate the play is a very effective method of providing information to audience. He is likely to get more attention because the audience is familiar with the person. In A view from the Bridge Miller uses a lawyer to narrate the play, which I think works really well because he used someone who is very intelligent and respected. Similarly a positive character could be used in this play to talk to audience. I chose Reverend John Hale, from this play to read the aside in act one, as the audience will be more familiar with the character when he comes later on in the act and introduces himself. Miller is interested in people who do not allow them to be caught up in hysteria but think for themselves and stand up for their believes against all odds. Similarly Hale backs this point, towards the end where he learns how things are going wrong. Hale changes his opinions as he gets more knowledge about the things going around him. The narrators opinion about things needs to be the same as that of author, because a person with different views cannot talk about views, which he does not believe in. Miller believes that society is never an excuse for our failings, and that we are responsible for ourselves, such a person is John. John tries to save the lives of innocent people wrongly accused of witchcraft. He is the only Judge who tried to save Reverend Proctor. However human weakness and guilt sometimes drag him down but still his character is positive. As millers describes John He feels himself allied with the best minds of Europe Miller is trying to say how self-centred John is but at the same time he is telling us that John is intelligent. The audience is more likely to listen to such person because of his reputation. The key reason for having a character from the play as a narrator is that the audience is familiar with the person; therefore Hale should narrate the asides in his normal character clothes, speech and movement. A good way of introducing characters is to let the person perform their most common role in the background and the narrator standing in front talking about the person. For example when Reverend Parris is introduced, John Hale could be standing in the front saying, there is very little good to be said for him. while Parris is in meeting in Church talking, but has no one listening. Since the asides in this play are not only introduction, doing so will lose the consistency of the asides, and the audience will not be clear whether its an aside or part of the play. Therefore while he is standing motionless on the stage and reading the asides where the stage is dark and a spotlight on the character and deep voice with no background music. The shining of bright light on Hale while the stage is all black will give him almost a god like image. Its only him talking and, there is no other option but listen to him. The pause in music will make the audience concentrate on the aside by having nothing else but John to listen to. His voice should have extra bass added to it. Radio experiments show that if the voice of presenters have bass then the listeners are more likely to remember what they listen to. The stage is all difficult to obscure and there is only one glow in the theatre approaching from John Hale while he states about Parris in his deep tone his house stood in a town but we would hardly call it a village today. The best way to perform asides in this play is to have a character from the play narrate the asides while full attention is given to him. The most suitable character would be Hale because the way he thinks about matters and his intelligence make him exceptional.

Capital Structure And Cost Of Capital For Morrisons Finance Essay

Capital Structure And Cost Of Capital For Morrisons Finance Essay It is very essential in todays modern age to upgrade and promote business in such a way that functioning can take place smoothly. This assignment is about the capital structure and cost of capital for Morrisons PLC. Also in this project an analysis on if I was a project manager and had to design a new project for the company what all stages and things I would have to do; are mentioned. This study is based on facts taken from the company website and annual report of 2009/10. Other information is gathered from educational case studies, website and core textbooks on this topic. Introduction According to www.wisegeek.com  [1]  Corporate  finance  is a broad term that is used to collectively identify the various financial dealings undertaken by a  corporation. In other words we can say that corporate finance is a division within a particular company that deals with financial operations of the company i.e. raising finances for various projects, analysis of various mergers and acquisitions etc. In the present world scenario, one of the most profitable sectors is retailing. Large scale retailers have become very powerful, in some ways even more powerful as companies than manufacturers. The British layman is highly dependent on these retailers like ASDA, Morrisons, Morrisons, Tesco etc so as to buy everyday use products and services. Even these retailers have broadened their scope of activity and have diversified into more than just everyday goods. One such retailer is WM Morrison Supermarkets PLC also referred to as Morrisons. Morrisons was a company started at Bradford market by William Morrison in the year 1899. Today it is termed as the fourth largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom. With almost 124,000 employees working in 403 stores across the nation, Morrisons has an operating income of  £671 million in 2010. The different types of products that Morrisons has to offer are as below:- Groceries Consumer products Fuel and Oil Pharmaceuticals Alcohol and beverages These are the major areas of business for Morrisons but apart from these also certain services are offered at different locations which are store specific. Morrisons has not yet set up base outside the United Kingdom but according to the company website and also the annual reports, the business can be divided into 6 main regions, namely Scotland with 51 stores North UK with 72 stores Midlands with 75 stores South East including Gibraltar at 63 stores South Central with 62 stores South West with 51 stores To discuss on the size of its business relative to its industry we can look at the report prepared by Edward Garner, 2008  [3]  as shown below (certain areas deleted as appropriate):- TOTAL TILL ROLL Great Britain Consumer Spend Includes all expenditure through main store tills and excludes petrol instore concession 12 Weeks to 12 August 2007   12 Weeks to 10 August 2008 change  £000s %  Ã‚   **   Ã‚ £000s %  Ã‚   ** % Total Till Roll   Ã‚  Ã‚   26,615,239   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   27,621,890 3.8   Total Grocers   Ã‚  Ã‚   18,733,701 100.0%   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   20,076,033 100.0% 7.2   Ã‚   Total Multiples   Ã‚  Ã‚   17,402,359 92.9%   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   18,719,527 93.2% 7.6   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Tesco   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   5,962,922 31.8%   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   6,351,531 31.6% 6.5   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Asda   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   3,142,151 16.8%   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   3,410,431 17.0% 8.5   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Morrisonss   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   3,016,586 16.1%   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   3,175,543 15.8% 5.3   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Sainsbury   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   2,042,026 10.9%   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   2,233,137 11.1% 9.4   Ã‚   Total Coops   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   815,208 4.4%   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   846,405 4.2% 3.8   Ã‚   Total Independents   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   516,134 2.8%   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   510,101 2.5% -1.2      Ã‚  Ã‚  Total Symbols   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   183,349 1.0%   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   181,137 0.9% -1.2   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Other Independents   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   332,785 1.8%   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   328,964 1.6% -1.1   ** = Percentage Share of Total Grocers According to this report we can clearly say that in comparison with other supermarkets, Morrisons is ranked as #4 in this sector. The performance over the last few years can be summed in by the use of a table as shown below: (all figures are in million  £) Year Turnover Profit or loss before tax Profit or loss after tax 2009 14,528 655.0 460.0 2008 12,969 612.0 554.0 2007 12,462 369.0 247.6 2006 12,115 (312.9) (250.3) According to the figures shown in the table above we can say that although 2006 was a tough and bad year for the company, its recovery process was efficient and planned. Through 2007 the company improved methods so as to maximize profits. The entire tenure has shown an increase in turnover for the company but although the turnover in 2009 was at its peak the company failed to achieve a higher profit which might be due to a variety of reasons that will be discussed in the project ahead. Morissons though been facing problems in 2006 2007 they have been winning awards and earning high percentage of profits with the production units of morissons as with special brewing, wines and bakery unit. they also have been The Oracle Retailer of the year 2009,The Oracle Retailer Week Awards, March 2009 Morissons have been pioneering in the retail sector comprising The Own Grocer Label awards, with gold and silver allocades among the retailers wining The Cloudy Apple Juice The Best Toffee Popcorn offering wide range of fresh farm products to freshly prepared breads and confectioneries within the nested units of morissons along with wide range of wine cellars and brewed beers and cafà © outlets within Financial structure The financial structure of a company is known by the balance sheet of the company. In what areas changes are required and in what ways are all known through the balance sheet of the company. For a person to analyze the balance sheet appropriately one must understand the basic concepts of the balance sheet as a financial analyst. After going through the financial report (balance sheet as well as the annual report) for Morrisons, I have come to a point where a conclusion can be made on the financial structure with relevance to turnover and operating profits, capital expenditure, earning per share, tax payable, return to shareholders and dividend cover. All these factors will help to calculate the standing of Morrisons. A brief study is also done on the basis of the return on assets to compare Morrisons with other retailers. Turnover and operating profit 2008/09 2009/10 Changes Turnover  £14528m  £15410m 6.07% Operating profit  £671m  £907m 35.17% Capital expenditure the capital expenditure has increased by  £228m and now is  £906m. This is due to the recent buying of the new co-operative and Somerfield stores at a cost of  £223m and a refurbishment cost of  £102m. Apart from this we can see a fall in the previous made capital expenditure. This is a healthy growth projector. Earnings per share the earnings per share has increased from 17.4pence per share to 22.8 pence per share. This is mainly due to the increase in underlying profits. There have been no other significant factors that would affect the earning per share. Tax payable the tax paid during the year is  £209m. In comparison to the tax paid in the previous year i.e.  £104m there has been a vast increase, this is mainly due to the effective tax rate that was increased and made 30%.This represents 50% of the tax for the year ended 1 February 2009, as well as 50% of the expected tax for the year ended 31 January 2010, and repayments of previous years. Return to shareholders the final dividend paid during the year is 7.1pence which shows an increase of 2.1pence per share in comparison to last year. This makes the entire dividend paid during the year 8.2 pence and the dividend cover 2.5 times. The calculation is as shown below Comparative study According to a study by Biz/Ed  [4]  the following information can be gathered on the return to assets and profit margins. As we can clearly observe in the table underneath, Morrison has the highest return on assets in comparison to any other retailer of food and the profit margin is also comparative higher than any other retailer. Company Return on Assets Profit margin Marks and spencers 4.43% 3.91% Morrisons 5.60% 3.61% Morrison 12.93% 5.87% Tesco 9.99% 5.72% Working Average Cost of Capital An average representing the expected return on all of a companys securities. Each source of capital, such as stocks, bonds, and other debt, is assigned a required rate of return, and then these required rates of return are weighted in proportion to the share each source of capital contributes to the companys capital structure. The resulting rate is what the firm would use as a minimum for evaluating a capital project or investment. According to www.investorwords.com  [5]  . The calculation for this is as shown below. All data is sourced from the annual report of 2009/10:- Current share price =  £277.50 (P1) Previous years share price =  £237.75 (P0) Dividend for previous year = 5.80 (D-1) Dividend for this year = 8.20 (D0) Increase in dividends = 41.37% The formula for calculating the cost of equity is as follows: Re = D1/P0 +G Therefore cost of Equity (Ke) = 10.6/326.25 + 41.37% = 41.40% Cost of debt (Kd) = Interest Paid/Average debt = 260/924 = 28.13% Therefore, WACC = Ke*(proportion of equity) + Kd*(proportion of debt) = 41.40*0.28 + 28.13*0.71 = 11.59+19.97% = 31.56% This shows that the average return that the company must pay to its investors is 31.56 % Project analysis If I were appointed as a project manager for the company, several roles would need to be fulfilled by me. For any new project to be successful the project manager is the key. The focus and aim success depends highly on the manager. The main functions for me in such a case according to Duncan Haughey  [6]  are as follows:- Planning and Defining Scope Activity Planning and Sequencing Resource Planning Developing Schedules Time Estimating Cost Estimating Developing a Budget Managing Risks and Issues Creating Charts and Schedules Risk Analysis Morrisons is a large retail firm which operates and sells almost all consumer goods. The latest expansion plan was too diverse into household furniture. The project being evaluated is the introduction of Morrisons into the furniture segment. The aims of such a project would be to beat Morrisons that has already started into this sector. The final objective of beating the other retailers would almost be fulfilled in such a way. Key determinants Initial Investment In order to conclude the early speculation for mounting into the manufacturing segment a careful research will be required on part of Morrisons. This would occupy looking at a business plan of a medium to large scale furniture producer. It will also involve hiring of an actuary to decide several costs. The recognition of accurate expenses necessary will involve hiring of engineers as well. An in depth study into the accessible furniture industry would be the best source of identifying the primary investment. Annual Revenue The quantity of cost to be incurred can be recognized with logical accuracy, however, annual revenues cannot. This is because of the fact that revenues are based upon demand for the product. Since Morrisons has been always selling furniture its growth in the furniture production will have reasonable sales if the quality is maintained. It can also be seen from the intensity of sales of Morrisonss own range of product labeled Morrisonss Basics. Annual Operating Costs The present level of operations of Morrisons is based upon buying and reselling. This indicates that there is a low level of in service cost. In order to make out the correct level of operating cost an imminent into the financial statements of a furniture company will be mandatory. Additional transport costs will require to be assessed as Morrisons operates in a number of locations of UK. In order to reap the profit of economies of scale Morrisons will have to generate a central production facility. This will add to the set cost and help to reduce the operating costs. Rates of Inflation Rates of price rises straight affect retailers like Morrisons. Specific inflation of raw materials like wood will unfavorably affect the company directly. General inflation will also have an outcome as the price paid by consumers will reap lower value in the future. This has to be accounted for in the project assessment. The sources of inflation will be in print data provided by the government. These will include national financial plan and forecasts. Rates of Taxation/ payment and Relief Rates of taxation are significant elements of capital budgeting as they affect the cash flow. The tax rates are always particular by the government. So there are no problems identifying them. Other than taxes several allowances can be obtained when investing in a fresh project. There are special release programs that promote investors to invest rather than take dividends. Furthermore the fixed equipment bought is also eligible for capital allowance which is a taxation relief. Risk When any project needs to be taken up, an analysis on the risk involved needs to be done. Risk can be known as the possibility of making a loss. If we wish to analyse this in terms of money then, we can use the formulae:- To manage the risk effectively I would carry out the following steps:- Identify threats the risk can be of various types i.e. overshooting costs, interest fluctuations, jobs taking too long etc. Estimate risk using the formulae given above, we can calculate the amount of risk for the proposed project. Managing risk you can manage risk by either utilizing the present assets or by creating new assets. Review testing systems and plans must be used effectively to check on the progress to manage risk. Due to lack of data, the figures that are shown below are fictitious. The assumption that the project will function in the way of the product life cycle. Year 2011 2012 2013 2014 Sales Revenue 1500 2000 2350 2550 Variable cost 620 680 720 860 Contribution 880 1320 1630 1790 Fixed Costs 500 500 500 500 Net Cash Flow 380 820 1130 1290 Taxation 30% 114 246 339 387 After Tax Cash Flow 266 574 791 903 8% Discount Factor 0.926 0.857 0.794 0.735 Present Value 246.31 491.91 628.05 663.70 Assumptions Initial investment is  £3000 Fixed cost is  £500 Variable cost is at 40% of sales Discount factor is 8% Tax rate is fixed at 30%  £ Sum of Present Values 2029.97 Written down Allowance 400.03 PV after 4 years 4000 Less: Initial Investment 3200 Net Present Value 3230 Quarterly report format Following is the table assumed for the year with four quarters considering the assumed forecast for the year 2011 Year Quarter 1 Quarter 2 Quarter 3 Quarter 4 Budget Actual Budget Actual Budget Actual Budget Actual Sales Revenue Variable cost Contribution Fixed Costs Profit The per quarter report starting for the first month of year for a quarter will be as follows Quarter 1 January February March Budget Actual Budget Actual Budget Actual Sales Revenue Variable cost Contribution Fixed Costs Profit The above comparative statement is for all 4 quarters of the financial year. Each quarter is divided into Budgeted and Actual. The report I would be sending to the directors if I were a manager the report would be in this format because it can be easily understood by the directors. If there is a difference between the budget and the actual amount in the statement then, this can be for a variety of reasons such as interpretation of budgets. If the difference is high then I would have to try and re-modify the budget for the next quarter and try and improve actual figures by all ways possible. References The role of a project manager; Duncan Haughey; 2009 a snapshot of the UK grocery market(2008); Edward Garner; TNS World-Panel http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-corporate-finance.htm http://www.morrisons.co.uk/Corporate/About-Morrisons/Company-history1/ http://www.bized.co.uk/compfact/ratios/ror12.htm http://www.investorwords.com/5849/WACC.html