Qualitative research Free Essays

Qualitative research refers to â€Å"investigating the features of a market through in-depth research that explores the background and context for decision making†[1].   In another words, this type of research prefers other methods rather than the statistical analysis of data to obtain certain conclusion about the market and aims to research on the behaviour of the customers. There are two types of qualitative research methods. We will write a custom essay sample on Qualitative research or any similar topic only for you Order Now    The first one is depth interviewing.   Depth interviewing refers to one – on – one interviewing as the main tool of finding the customer’s preferences and opinions about a product, a service or a marketing campaign, for example. The second method is group discussions, in which the focus moves from the individual consumer to the group of potential customers[2].   The customers are brought together and discuss a certain product or service, analyzing the strength and weaknesses of that product and proposing ways by which its sales can be increased. In general, qualitative research is used â€Å"when more in depth or perceptual data is required†[3].   This means that, as a marketing tool, qualitative research will be used when attempting to obtain very focused information on consumer behavior an consumer reaction to a certain product or service. The first important advantage of such a marketing tool is the fact that it is very applied and that it is most likely to provide very accurate information in the area it is used.   If you conduct an individual, one-on-one interview with a potential or active client, you will be posing questions so that you will obtain feedback as to the customer’s preference in terms of that product’s characteristics. In this way, the product that will be launched on the market will be more fit for the potential clients, it will bear many of characteristics they need or require.   If the product has already been launched, then this will most likely be corrected following the new evaluations.   Because it will reflect more of the requirements the clients want, the product’s sales are likely to grow as well. Among the disadvantages, we can mention, first of all, the fact that the market is formed of an almost incalculable number of clients and customers, while these methodologies target only a very small number of them.   We may assume that the targeted individuals are not necessarily representative for the entire population and that they will be only be referring to their own preferences rather than those of the entire potential group of consumers. Additionally, we can point towards the very large costs qualitative research implies.   Indeed, being able to perform individual interviews is definitely a task that will mean additional costs for each of the interviews.   The group interview methodology is also costly, as all the participants will need to be paid, while this type of session is likely to take up some time. Quantitative research refers to â€Å"measuring a market and quantifying that measurement with data†[4].   Obviously, compared to qualitative research, this is a much larger perspective, a perspective where the entire market needs to be analyzed.   Additionally, quantitative research will aim to discover and statistically analyze information and data on the market size, market growth rates etc. On the other hand, quantitative research can also be used to evaluate customer preference and decide on customer attitudes and awareness for certain products. The quantitative analysis is based on two essential vectors: data collection and data analysis.   In terms of data collection, this activity will be aimed at gathering data that will help the marketing – related decisions of the company.   Data can be collected in any circumstances, on the street in interviews, through the Internet, on the phone or over the mail etc. On the other hand, this data needs to be interpreted and analyzed so as to provide the necessary reaction from the decision makers.   By interpretation, we will mean that the data will be statistically analyzed, trends and current tendencies will be estimated, all this with the use of different statistical measure and calculations. Obviously, the main advantage of quantitative research is that it give such an ample perspective over the whole market rather than isolated opinions of certain individuals.   On the other hand, the problem is that it often does not incorporate personal opinions, things like customer preference and specific customer behaviour, which would be covered by the qualitative research. In general, it is often recommended that the two different types of analyses are combined so as to reflect best both the market in general and the individual preferences. This way we can ensure that the marketing decision is entirely sustained and supported by relevant data. Bibliography 1. Market research – qualitative research. On the Internet at http://www.tutor2u.net/business/marketing/research_qualitative.asp. Last retrieved on November 15, 2006. 2. Qualitative Market Research. Last retrieved on November 15, 2006 3. Market research – quantitative research. Last retrieved on November 15, 2006.       [1] Market research – qualitative research. On the Internet at http://www.tutor2u.net/business/marketing/research_qualitative.asp. Last retrieved on November 15, 2006. [2] Ibid. [3] Qualitative Market Research. On the Internet at http://www.apmforum.com/emerald/qualitative-market-research.htm. Last retrieved on November 15, 2006 [4] Market research – quantitative research. On the Internet at http://www.tutor2u.net/business/marketing/research_quantiative.asp. Last retrieved on November 15, 2006. How to cite Qualitative research, Essays Qualitative Research Free Essays What is so stressful about caring for a dying patient? Nursing 314 – Research February 3, 2013 What is so stressful about caring for a dying patient? Death is something that we all have to deal with, be it in our profession or in our daily lives. This article discusses the reasons why caring for dying patients is stressful for nurses and is a high risk for burn out. The article also gives findings related to the study and gives recommendations based on the results. We will write a custom essay sample on Qualitative Research or any similar topic only for you Order Now The study shows that education is needed for the nurses that care for the dying patient. The article gave me the understanding of the purpose of the research study and the findings of the study. The article clearly states the purpose of the research and the findings. The title is clear and unambiguous, but the abstract causes the title not to be accurate. The Title should maybe state something about the Nursing shortage. The abstract offers a clear overview of the study. The abstract states that the problem stems from the nursing shortage, and this is what causes stress and burnout. The abstract also states that the â€Å"study used a qualitative theory approach to examine the experiences of nurses and their particular concerns about caring for a dying patient† (Peterson, 2010). The purpose of the study is to examine the experiences of nurses and their concerns about caring for the dying patient. In order to address the reasons for the stress, the study was designed to provide a better understanding of the concerns the nurses have regarding caring for the dying patient. The literature review helped me to understand the specific concerns/stressors that nurses experience when caring for a dying patient. Peterson states that â€Å"common clinical stressors experienced by nurses are 1) watching a dying patient die, 2) the death of a patient, and 2) listening to or talking with a patient about their death imminent death† (Peterson, 2010). In the Nursing profession we are taught how to give holistic care and our main goals are to help our patients to feel and to get better. We tend to develop a bond with our patients and it is very stressful watching someone die, especially when we have that special bond. It is also hard listening and talking about the death. Being able to maintain professional distance while caring for the dying patients and their families, was another common concern among the participants (Peterson, 2010). The sampling method and sample size was identified in the study. A qualitative grounded theory approach was employed for two reasons. â€Å"The first was to gain an understanding of the concerns that the nurses had and to gain knowledge about their experiences in their own words. The second was to allow emotional dimension to be examined† (Peterson, 2010). Data collection strategies were clearly stated. The study used audiotape interviews and online open ended surveys. The nurses and nursing students were also examined for the amount of experience they had. There were 15 participates of which 8 were interviewed at a Midwestern university, and 7 were online. â€Å"Participants were asked to respond to two measures about death. The first was the multidimensional fear of death scale. The participants exhibited an average or healthy level of fear. The second measure was the Frommelt attitudes toward nursing care of the dying scale, which is show the attitude the participants had toward caring for dying patients. Only 9 completed the scale and all indicated a positive attitude toward caring for dying patients† (Peterson, 2010). A lot of nurses aren’t accustomed to caring for dying patients and thus have a fear due to lack of experience. Others may have a fear of not knowing how to respond and react to the dying patient. It appears that the participants were suitable for informing research and that the researcher followed the steps of the data analysis. This was a qualitative study of which interviews and surveys were appropriate. There were no indication that measures were taken to ensure autonomy, confidentiality and freedom of harm. The participants did sign an informed consent before they had an interview. I did not see where the researcher discusses anything about trustworthiness in the article, nor did I see anything about credibility, dependability, transferability and goodness discussed. The findings of this research study were clearly identified. The results were broken down into three sections and revealed that more education is needed on death and dying. It was found that communication can be a hindrance if there is a lack of education and trainings. In conclusion the article proved and showed the true stressors on Nurses that deal with dying patients on a daily basis. The study proved that communication challenges were the primary concerns among the participants. In order to help nurses cope more effectively in this situation, communication training programs are needed not only to benefit the nurses, but to provide the best care for their patients† (Peterson, 2010) The reference section clearly cited all resources that were used in the study. REFERENCES Brown, S. J. (2012). Evidenced-Based Nursing: The Research-Practice Connection, 2nd edition. Sudbury, MA: Jones Bartlett Learning. Peterson, J. (2010). What is so stressful about caring for a dying patient? International journal of palliative Nursing. How to cite Qualitative Research, Essays

A Report on Self-Leadership

Question: Describe about A Report on Self-Leadership? Answer: Introduction: The report aims at providing deep insight into the concepts of self-leadership and positive psychology individually and with respect to the chosen career of business management. It also aims at using a self-leadership perspective for analyzing personal strengths as well as weaknesses as depicted in the survey conducted. It states the importance of leadership and positive psychology along with their approaches. The report also emphasizes upon the suitability of personal traits to the chosen career of business management. The career reflected here is that of business management, specifically sales and marketing. For running any business, it demands varied range of managerial skills. Marketing is not just selling but much beyond it. It refers to the identification of customers and make them purchase own products or services (Edwards, 2011). Self-leadership refers to the practice of influencing ones thoughts, feelings and behavior intentionally for achieving key personal objectives. It drives an individual in making effective decisions and maintaining creativity. Some of the attributes of self leadership are setting of personal goals, self-awareness, positive personal beliefs, self-motivation, and positive communication and also acting upon feedback (Ford and Harding, 2011). Positive psychology refers to the study of happiness. It deals with the possibilities of individuals to stay happy and contented. It focuses upon the ways human beings can prosper to lead a healthy life. It is solely centered to help people live happily. Critical Analysis of Self-Leadership and Positive Psychology: Self leadership refers to the wider concept and interpreted as the approaches by which an individual may be influenced to set up self-direction as well as self-motivation require performing actions. Research undertaken across several settings through educational domain in the field of airline industry has revealed that all practices conducted to realize effective self-leadership by employees may result in plethora of advantages including improvement of self-efficacy, mental performance and that of job satisfaction (Islam, 2014). This concept involves allowing oneself with the application of both behavioral as well as mental techniques. Behavioral self-leadership involves approaches of determining personal goals, self-observation, and self-reinforcement, including that of exploration of natural rewards within task performances. Approach of mental self-leadership involves changes as well as examination of mental imagery, self-dialogue, and that of assumptions as well as thought process . It is observed that effective self-leadership. Thus, the concept offers adequate promise to undertake the pursuit of efficiencies within employees at the next level (Lord and Brown, 2001). In fact, employees who are self-leading are both behavioral as well as cognitive may give the best prototype for achieving organizational as well as employee effectiveness. As per researches, individuals who are drawn to feel more contented, valued and happy at work remain better off than those who feel more. This has led many corporate seniors to implement positive psychology approaches at the workplace. Some of the approaches require professional expertise to conduct, but at different settings of offices. The real driving force is actually far behind positive psychology in workplaces with the idea that employees who seem innovative, happier and productive create attractiveness to work environment (Pekerti, 2005). Several psychological experts recommend extensive training of employees and attempt to retreat prior to implementing positive campaigns. Employees can be encouraged by various means, but mostly by praising and recognition. By showing commitment towards gratitude at workplace, one may attempt to focus on positive aspects for encouraging others to act accordingly. Majority of businesses require innovation as well as creativity of organizational employees (The Leadership Quarterly Special Issue on Leadership, Self, and Identity, 2004). When they are allowed as well as motivated towards thought sharing, processes of business may even flourish and get improved by streamline as well as emergent products, and also by effective communication. Employees who feel that management hears their voices are actually happier ones. Beneficial Personality Traits: The following reflects the personal traits which enabled me personally to build effective personality as a reputed international marketing manager. The foremost trait is to be sincere with own customers. The atmosphere of conducting business must be favorable, positive and healthy so that customers may feel comfortable to conduct the negotiation (Quinteiro, Passos and Curral, 2014). It taught me that one must attempt to always put on a smile on face while communicating with customers since this approach can actually work wonders for the organization. The second trait is that to have an effective focus. For becoming successful marketing manager in the international ground, it is important that I must stay increasingly focused upon my job. I should set my personal target and based on that I should concentrate all my efforts to realize the very goals. I need to be self-reliant (Sinclair, 2010). Within international business, only those individuals can survive and progress who takes deci sions without being a bit reluctant and in fact feels quite independent to proceed with it. Thus, it is essential that a marketing manager must capably take initiatives in order to excel within a field. Another important trait is that I need to have faith in myself. One must have profound faith in oneself and feels determined to attain success. I need to be laborious. Every international marketing manager must possess enthusiasm towards jobs and must strive to deliver their best in accomplishing tasks. I need to be optimistic because only positive energy and attitude can lead to increased success. Lastly, I need to be adjustable. Every marketing manager needs to adapt himself with the changing environment and also within the stipulated time. Personal Profile: Career: Marketing Manager for reputed company Interests: I have interests on Travelling, Hiking, Bungee Jumping expedition, listening to music, photography and watching movies. Skills: Technical Skills: Computer proficiency in MS word and substitute programsWeb development and data analysis skill.Maintaining consumer confidence and momentumHTML 5 and CSS3 operation know-how.SPSS 17 operational know-how. Communication Skills: Explaining idea that are clear and has some objectiveExpressing feelings and sharing views with the people of the organization.A good and a careful listener with a good memory to hold what is required to be remembered.Can speak fluently in three languages with clear pronunciation. Management skills: Comprehending the regional, local, national, global marketplace according to the organizationPlanning and organizing targets and tasks so as to achieve specific goals.Quick tactical decision making skills even within a short duration of time (DuBrin, n.d.).Leadership skills based on the management of team and monitoring the progress of a task. Team work: Problem solving nature, both analytical as well as business case studies.Ability to motivate the subordinates, colleagues and team Values: I value every culture and their respective language. I also believe that traditions are also an essential part of life because they reflect our origin. Apart from that I easily adopt change and try to learn about others views and thoughts. I have a good record of maintaining integrity with my customers and with the help of integrity only I have been able to establish a good rapport with the customers (Schultz and Schultz, 2013). I believe every individual is born to contribute something to the world and that needs to be positive. Making a person smile and maintaining general god relation to every people. Every people need to be respected and it is important to value every people their thoughts and their perceptions (CARTON, 2008) Education and Training: I have done summer internship in Coca-Cola and as a delivery boy for Dominos. Apart from that I have experience in working as a sales manager in David Jones, Holden Special vehicles and Elfin Cars. I have completed graduation with good grades and completed management course in Marketing. Experience: During my graduation course, in order to carry on my necessary purchasing I worked in delivering pizza for Dominos. There I had an idea of interacting customers and understood the value of serving customers. I worked as a management trainee in coca cola and then I have worked as a marketing manager for David Jones and Elfin cars and Holden Special cars: Analysis: Instrument Findings How to Interpret Identified Strengths Identified weakness Learn Realistic Optimism Internality 2.25 Globality 4.5 Stability 3.75 Internality is less than the average because the I generally tend to think more relating to other persons experience For stability I think that though we expect good things to happen yet bad things have ample scope to occur. I think in global context somewhere or the other bad things will keep on happening if we can do something then we should contribute otherwise atleast try to help (Long, n.d.). I feel the world should be more active and shouldnt waste time on unproductive and destructive work. I take time to comprehend desired meaning but if I put a good focus I tend to nailed it. I should learn to solve conflicts in a big level. Locus of Control Scored 8 I have a good external locus of control My hard works pays good outcomes Sometimes I act emotionally Need to control my emotions. Survey Scores Type A Type B Total score type score Type score 100 Extrovert 60 Introvert 40 100 Sensing 50 Intuitive 50 100 Thinking 80 Feeling 20 100 Judging 50 Perceiving 50 100 Control of Internal factors Control of External Factors optimistic 75% Pessimistic 25% 100 Degree high degree low 100 Locus of Control Points scored average Stability 3.75 3.5 Globality 4.5 3.5 Internality 2.25 3.5 Question Strongly disagree disagree neutral Strongly Agree agree Is management for me? Does management suits me? 10 1 5 5 6 6 4 8 5 10 Do I work Emotionally? 2 4 6 8 10 So I take intelligent decisions? 5 5 7 1 12 Do I lead a good team work? 4 4 4 0 18 Does my company seems to be good 5 5 0 0 20 Am I clear in communication 4 3 5 6 12 Do I guide people properly? 8 2 0 4 16 Am I good with my technical skills? 13 4 1 1 11 Family: Around 8 family members had been surveyed on my personal skills and most of them had been bias on their survey which showed a clear positive analysis. Through surveying on my personality traits it was found that my families consider my personal traits more than my professional traits and in that basis the survey was done (Long, n.d.). Friends: Through feedback of friends around 12 friends were surveyed and out of them two were my colleague. They had been quite casual about giving their feedback and the reports may not provide accurate scores. Colleagues: Colleagues had been very formal and out of ten colleagues only two supervisors had been fair enough to which it can be considered that their feedback will be more helping than form others. Through 360 degree feedback: A 360 degree feedback session was taken in the office from my colleague so as to evaluate my effectiveness to which the degree of involvement and conducting as well as team work along with suggestions were received. Suggestions like improving the ability to focus on practical terms more than emotional terms had been one of the prime suggestions (Derler and Weibler, 2014). People preferred to spend more time with me but they didnt like the lack of time I had for them. Colleagues emphasized to be more open to other colleagues and be a little less professional. My interaction with customers needed to be informal and that one of my customer with experience in the field suggested. Is this career right: By analyzing all the strength and weakness factor and locus of control it was found that marketing would be a proper job role for this evaluation. Generally type A people are impatient and patience had been a very strong point in this case but the type A people according to Myers Briggs model are more likely to adopt heart disease in future (Erbe, n.d.). For that health consciousness and safety measure is very much needed. Apart from that daily yoga and other forms of reducing stress is also needed. The career choice is considered to be right because the traits and personalities along with practical experience and educational knowledge are more acceptable in this field. Conclusion: Completing this personal portfolio for my management and leadership skills I have found that people have rated me on the basis of their own perception except two people whose suggestion were genuine. Many established the fact that being too much involved in activities I might lose focus from my life. To be good is not what I expect from tells his life, the sole purpose is to do something great for the world. Though it feels good that most of the feedback shad been positive yet surveying people one know bring predictable results. The purpose of life is to stand out as a responsible leader in a leading company and also to lead the society towards success. In order to maintain and develop marketing activities it is a common goal of a manager to reach the target. Without target life has no meaning and therefore achieving a target brings a pleasure for self satisfaction. References CARTON, A. (2008). ENHANCING LEADERSHIP THEORIES WITH GOAL STRUCTURE.Academy of Management Proceedings, 2008(1), pp.1-6.Ciccarelli, S. and White, J. (2013). Psychology. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson.Derler, A. and Weibler, J. (2014). The ideal employee: context and leaders implicit follower theories.Leadership Org Development J, 35(5), pp.386-409.DuBrin, A. (n.d.). Leadership.Edwards, G. (2011). Concepts of Community: A Framework for Contextualizing Distributed Leadership. International Journal of Management Reviews, 13(3), pp.301-312.Erbe, N. (n.d.). Approaches to managing organizational diversity and innovation.Ford, J. and Harding, N. (2011). The impossibility of the 'true self' of authentic leadership. Leadership, 7(4), pp.463-479.Islam, G. (2014). Identities and ideals: Psychoanalytic dialogues of self and leadership. Leadership, 10(3), pp.344-360.Long, D. (2012). Third generation leadership and the locus of control. Farnham: Ashgate Publishing Ltd.Long, D. (n.d.). Deliveri ng high performance.Lord, R. and Brown, D. (2001). Leadership, values, and subordinate self-concepts. The Leadership Quarterly, 12(2), pp.133-152.Pekerti, A. (2005). Cross-cultural perceptions in the leadership process: Theoretical perspective on the influence of culture on self-concepts and manager-worker attributions. Thunderbird International Business Review, 47(6), pp.711-735.Quinteiro, P., Passos, A. and Curral, L. (2014). Thought self-leadership and effectiveness in self-management teams. Leadership.Schultz, D. and Schultz, S. (2013). Theories of personality. [Belmont, Calif.]: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.Sinclair, A. (2010). Placing self: How might we place ourselves in leadership studies differently?.Leadership, 6(4), pp.447-460.Spector, P. (2014). Introduction: The problems and promise of contemporary leadership theories. Organiz. Behav., 35(5), pp.597-597.The Leadership Quarterly Special Issue on Leadership, Self, and Identity. (2004). The Leadership Quarterly, 15(3), pp.43 1-432.

Whole Foods description and generic strategy

Whole Foods was established in 1980 after the merger between Safeway store and Clarksville Natural Grocery. The company’s expansion strategy began in 1984 when it started acquiring other existing food chains.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on Whole Foods description and generic strategy specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In 2004, the company managed to enter the United Kingdom market and consequently acquired quite a good number of food chains. Before the close of 2008, Whole Foods established more food chains although some of them were closed down after a short duration. It is worth to mention that Whole Foods is one the leading organic and natural foods supermarkets across the globe. The high performance level of the company is linked to the company’s mission statement which entails the provision of products that enhance the overall wellbeing and vitality of its customers. The latter has been att ained by ensuring that customers are supplied with the highest quality products. The aspiration of the company is to achieve international recognition by producing unique organic and natural foods and also increasing its retail outlets. The company’s expansion strategy The expansion strategy of the company focuses on increasing supply in order to help the company meet the growing demand for both the natural and organic foods. The increasing demand is attributed to the entry of new buyers in the marketplace. In order to achieve the desired level of expansion, the company has continued to invest substantial level of resources in different areas especially in political reforms. This is due to the current regulations from the government that restricts the quantity of organic farming. Moreover, the level of research and development that focuses on the production of staple organic products has also been intensified. The company also puts a lot of emphasis on the placement as an exp ansion technique. Whole Foods targets customers with income levels that are above average and also ensures that its stores are placed in areas where almost half the residents have at least some college education. The company believes that such a population is in a vantage position to support healthy, environmental, and nutritional values. The current number of distribution stores and retails outlets is an indication that the company is performing considerably well in its operations. In order for the company to achieve the desired growth levels, there is great need to continue investing in both sales and financial research. This is based on the fact that any given company should not merely focus on education level and income when expanding its operations. Whole Food’s key strength or weakness, opportunity or threat, that justifies why the expansion strategy should be continued A major strength lies in the company’s ability to provide quality and high standard products. Customers who purchase natural and organic foods from the company are guaranteed high levels of satisfaction. In addition, the company enjoys a strong company management equipped with economic value and improved systems for providing employees with incentives. These strengths are very helpful to the company as it undertakes its expansion strategy.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Giving incentives to employees serves as one way of motivating them since it increases their participation in expanding the company’s operations. However, it is vital to note that the company’s effort to expand is likely to be hindered due to the high prices charged on some of the products. In order to overcome this weakness, the management should explain why some of the products are more expensive than others. This will make customers to remain loyal to the company. The expansion of Whole Foods is also justified based due to the fact that the company has a very attractive market share and also holds a strong position within the targeted market. This implies that it is capable of realizing a more profitable and stronger position by expanding to new markets. The company’s key opportunities include increased recognition within the organic or health food industry, and brand image enhancement within the surrounding community. By continuing the expansion strategy, Whole Foods can increase the level of its sales and increase demand for its products by attracting new customers. In addition, the company finds it easy to promote the organic foods while enhancing the brand loyalty and image. It is highly likely that Whole Foods will continue to expand in other areas and consequently increase its profitability and market share. On the other hand, Whole Foods faces key threats such as increased supply of organic food substitutes from the local grocers and high pri ces on some of the company’s products. This means that it is necessary for the company to come up with appropriate strategies that may help it to retain its current customers and attract new ones. By so doing, it will be possible for the company to continue with its expansion programs. In my view, I believe that Whole Foods is justified to continue with its current expansion strategy since it enjoys significant strengths and opportunities that give it a competitive power over other players in the same industry. However, the company should address the key weaknesses and threats that are likely to affect its expansion strategy. For instance, Whole Foods can gain significantly by reducing the price of some of its products alongside improving quality. This prevents customers from shifting their interests to other competitors. This case study on Whole Foods description and generic strategy was written and submitted by user Tate D. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

File System and Nokia N8 Essays

File System and Nokia N8 Essays File System and Nokia N8 Essay File System and Nokia N8 Essay We have recently tried XEON Belle  Refresh  CFW on our Nokia N8 upon user recommendations and its really good and stable. Xeon’s CFW has only  English  and  Italian languages. (Italian as default, you can change it into  English  later on). Detailed change-logs are available after the break. Before you start following this tutorial, we recommend you to have a look at  Cfficial Nokia Belle Refresh Change-logs. THIS CUSTOM  FIRMWARE  IS ONLY FOR NOKIA N8, DO NOT TRY IT ON ANY OTHER DEVICE OR YOU’LL BRICK IT UP. PLEASE DO NOT ASK WHETHER THIS CUSTOM  FIRMWARE  WOULD BE AVAILABLE FOR ANY OTHER DEVICE, OTHER THAN NOKIA N8. Xeon Belle  Refresh  3. 4. 7 for N8 – Change-log 111. 040. 1511 – S^4 Xeon 3. 4. 7 – 23/10/2012 -Update Qt WebKit 4. 8. 2 -Fix +System+ (Rimozione Social) New Music player Dolby Digital effects for headphones added Belle FP1 Multi Tasking Manager Custom THEME EFFECTS (C:/Animations/Effects) Modded Widgets and Clocks Hacked – can install all unsigned apps / games / widgets without certificate errors Battery and Signals made colorful Signals Symbol Changed Starting Bootscreen added More than 6 homescreens can be added Camera Mute Mod added Resume downloads from the internet in default web browser Vibration on phone lock / unlock removed 200MB  FREE PHONE  MEMORY 10 Music Equalizer Settings Added All Apps can be renamed Cache shifted to E:/   Downloaded  from N8 Fan Club Send protected files from default file manager Call logs will be saved for 999 days Added ROM PATCHER with Lots of Patches How to Flash Xeon Belle  Refresh  111. 040. 1511 on Nokia N8 YOU CAN ALSO TAKE HELP FROM OUR  VIDEO TUTORIAL GUIDE OVER HERE 1. Download amp; Install Phoenix from here:  PSS_2012. 04. 003. 47798_latest. xe (Make sure to disable your Anti-virus to avoid Insert Nokia Dongle Error) 2. Download   All three files and extract them all to RM-596 folder. Password for extraction is:  Xeon^4 Core:                           S4(3. 4. 7)R1. 7z ROFS2:                     S4(3. 4. 7)R2-EN. 7z ROFS3/UDA:   S4(3. 4. 7)R3. 7z (Note that this  firmware  is pre-hacked, you are not required to hack / unlock it using  Norton Hack) 3. Make sure you have extracted all  firmware  files in folder path: C:/Program Files/Nokia/Phoenix/Products/RM-596 (If RM-596 folder doesn’t exist, you need to create RM-596 folder yourself and paste the  firmware  files inside it) 4. : Now connect your Nokia N8 in  Ovi Suite Mode with  USB cable  and run Phoenix 5. Goto File and hit Scan Product (wait for some time) 6. Proceed to Flashing and hit  Firmware  update. 7. Select the  firmware  product code with three dots (†¦) (Select:  0599750: euro1_dg_italy) and click OK. (Don’t worry for the product code, it can be any one) | Click to  enlarge| 8. Now hit the options button, just beneath SW  Reset  button and a window will appear. Delete:  RM-596_M005. 50. emmc. fpsx  as show below | Click to  enlarge| 9. Now  Click on Software  Reset  button. The flashing process would start and might ask you to disconnect  USB cable  and connect it again and slightly push the power button on N8 to initiate flashing Nokia Belle  RefreshCustom  Firmware. Flashing would hardly take 3 – 5 minutes on an average PC. Enjoy the Nokia Belle  RefreshCFW on your Nokia N8 with all new widgets. (The flashing process is similar for every Nokia Belle Device, however you cannot use  firmware  of one device on any other device) Backup Downloads 808FanClub. com_Video_amp;_Photo_Editors_-_ALL_langs. _by_SkullATOS_unsigned. sis QuickOffice_Belle_Euro3_Unsigned__6. 4. 6. sis AdobeReaderLE_v10. 0. 245. sis F-Secure_Anti-Theft_v7. 00. 17415. sis InternetSearch_v3. 0. 8. sis MicrosoftCommunicator_v2. 1. 369. sis Microsoft_office_for_nokia_bell_Unsigned. zip Nokia_Evolve_V3_Original_Pro_Edition_Signed. sis nokia_maps_suite_3_458612. 00_12wk9_b05_PRD_STORE. sis OviMusic_v13. 2. 24. sis storeinstaller_tb92_QTbundle_prd_PROD_3. 24. 053. sisx Languages in this  Firmware: English  and Italian Frequently Asked Questions: Q: I am using another Belle  Refresh  CFW (111. 040. 1511), will I have to downgrade first? A: If you are using another Belle  Refresh  CFW based on v111. 040. 511 (for instance Diamond Belle   Refreshor PVN’s CFW), you won’t be required to downgrade, just flash this  firmware. Even if you are using AminKing v11 till now, you can   simply flash it using the flashing method as mentioned above, no downgrade is required. Q: I   want to return back to Official Nokia Belle  Refresh  v111. 040. 1511, what to do? A: Just download Official Nokia Belle  Refresh  Firmware  v111. 040. 1511 from NaviFirm and flash it in the same way with Phoenix. Q: Can I downgrade this  firmware? In case I want to return back to Symbian Anna? A: Yes you can downgrade using this  downgrade tutorial over here. Q: My Nokia N8 went dead after following this guide, what to do? A: First of all, don’t worry, try to  Flash your Nokia N8 in DEAD USB Mode. It will be fine. Q: Will updating to this CFW or Downgrading from CFW to PR 1. 0 erase my all data from the phone? A: NO! Your data would remain preserved in E:/ MASS MEMORY, however backup of your important data is always recommended. Q: My phone doesn’t scan for music / songs after flashing this CFW? A: Place all your music files in  E:/Music Q: Where should I place the  custom theme effects  after flashing this  firmware? A: Extract your  custom theme effects  in  C:/Animations/effects You might also like:

Xavier Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Xavier - Assignment Example ome information regarding these people from the local sources close to them, I have come to know that these men have come from the Goa region of India, which happens to be a colony of the Portuguese King (Moran 7). Not only these men have converted a large section of the natives in this far flung Indian land to their religion, but in achieving this purpose, they received ample political and financial help from the King of Portugal (Moran 7). As per my information, they are accompanied here by a Japanese man whom they call Paul, who not only practices their religion but is actively helping them spread their religion, as they are not conversant with our language (Ross 29). With the help of this man Paul, they have converted hundreds of Japanese people to their religion at Kagoshima (Xavier 327). This Japanese man Paul is helping these foreign men by conveying their message to the Japanese people and by translating the scriptures of their religion into the Japanese Language (Xavier 327) . These white men were extended a warm welcome in Kagoshima by the family of this Paul. I got all this information from one of the relatives of Paul. His Royal Highness, going by this information, if these so called Portuguese priests of the true religion are strongly backed by the Portuguese King, who rules over many parts of India, it would be really practical to conclude that their intention in coming to this part of Japan may not be merely to spread their religion, but also to help the Portuguese Empire spread its sway in this part of Japan. Converting our local people will really help them in achieving this purpose. Once our people get converted to their religion, it will get easier for the Portuguese people to make them rebel against His Highness and his army. In fact as per my information, they have already started taking steps at gaining influence over the Japanese people, by targeting their places of learning and worship. As per my knowledge, some of these white men have

Lavin on Caravaggio, Alpers on Velazquez, Hyde on Boucher Essay

Lavin on Caravaggio, Alpers on Velazquez, Hyde on Boucher - Essay Example With respect to Velazquez’s painting on Las Meninas, Alpers mentions that certain contents and elements in the artist’s paintings are solely appended on the historical contexts of the characters rather than on their natural pictorial representation. Technically, artificial representation of elements and contexts in Las Meninas is in tandem with the 17th Century painting where important contents were fore-grounded or proximally situated with respect to auxiliary contents. Apparently, the pictorial quality of Las Meninas is inventively created and sustained so as to distinguish particular features from others (Alpers 34). For example, the princess together with the dwarf maid in Velazquez’s painting is wholly depicted on the painting’s foreground. However, the upstanding soldier and other characters at the rare are casually acknowledged as a means of creating a gaze rather than a glance on the viewer. Therefore, Velazquez’s paintings of Las Meninas ar e anecdotally narrative as opposed to being genuine in nature. Predictably, the artificial representation of characters in Las Meninas is meant to highlight the distinguishable social ranks of different characters. With respect to Boucher’s portrait of Pompadour at her Toilette, Melissa Hyde acknowledges the fact that the painting is a self-representation image; hence Boucher played a re-representation role in creation of the pictorial artwork. Apparently, Pompadour wanted to self-depict herself in front of a mirror. As a result, Boucher strived to pictorially represent.

Financial performance of microfinance institutions

Financial performance of microfinance institutions Financial Performance of Microfinance Institutions Abstract The paper investigates the financial attractiveness of microfinance institutions (MFIs). With the use of CAMEL methodology is the performance of MFIs analyzed. A comparison with G10 commercial banks shows†¦. Secondly, the systematic risk factors of MFIs are identified. The study * VU University Amsterdam, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, De Boelelaan 1105, 1081 HV Amsterdam Comments are welcome at: [emailprotected] Introduction This paper investigates the financial performance of microfinance institutions (MFIs) from the perspective of a foreign investor. Microfinance institutions offer a broad amount of financial products and services to people who lack access to traditional banking services, also called; ‘the unbankable. Starting from social driven performance measures, the microfinance industry has been arguably effective in reducing poverty worldwide. In the last decades the microfinance industry has developed into an alternative investment class. The sector is characterized by attractive returns, low default rates and an explosive growth. Nevertheless, there is only a small scientific basis about the promises microfinance offers as a financial investment class. The financial attractiveness of MFIs for investors is questioned within this paper. Through analyzing the performance of MFI with CAMEL ratings and identifying the systematic risk factors, enriches this paper the academic field of finance. The study starts from the findings of Krauss Walter (2008). Their empirical results show that MFIs have a low or non exposure with international commercial markets from developed nations. Microfinance investments are for investors thus useful for portfolio diversification. Besides the social benefit that social oriented investors gain, the question arises what is the potential financial gain for a foreign investor? Nonacademic sources present microfinance as a interesting alternative investment class for solely return oriented investors. Institutions as the Consultative Group to Assists the Poor (CGAP) are reporting profits twice as high as their local peers and returns on investments in some parts of the world between 117 and 847 percent (Little field Holtman, 2005). Gonzales Rosenberg (2006) presented evidence of MFIs that outperform commercial banks on the return on assets. The returns are combined with a repayment rate of loans of almost 100 percent. Group liability repayment systems realize the low default rates. The repayment schemes are typical for the microfinance industry since clients lack collateral for the provided loans. The numbers indicate a save investment with a high return for investors. Nevertheless, investors seem to be skeptic about investing in MFIs. As Krauss Walter (2008, p.6) righteously mention: â€Å" Investors appear to perceive microfinance as excessively risky relative to the returns it generates, partially due to a lack of viable foreign exchange hedges, absence of a solid track record, poor reporting standards, heterogeneous products and inadequate liquidity.† The Microfinance Exchange (MIX) tracks the performance of MFIs since 1998. The MIX is a platform which gathers and publishes financial and communal oriented (outreach) numbers of MFIs. The institutions deliver the data voluntary to the MIX. Of the approximately 10.000 MFIs worldwide, only a small percentage (around 8 percent) send reports to independent platforms as the Microfinance Exchange. The incentive to offer data is to attract more funds from investors (Hartarska Nadolnuak, 2008). The attraction of more funds leads to a higher amount of accessible capital for the low-income clients. A high return on investment is promised by MFIs to investors. In combination with the support to poor people, seems microfinance to be the commercial solution for worldwide poverty. In practice, this promise is only rarely fulfilled by the institutions, due to the high operating cost per client and the lack of knowledge and transparency within the institutions. Academic research is necessary to cl assify the sources of growth in microfinance institutions, thereby establishing a valid basis to assess the performance and risk of MFIs. The paper aims to increase the transparency and rationale behind the data of microfinance. Transparency is increased by presenting measures of performance of the institutions in relation with their domestic environment. MFIs are considered as emerging banks in developing countries. A comparison with commercial banks using adjusted performance methods is used as a starting point. Identifying the systematic risk factors within the domestic environment results in a valid basis to assess the performance of MFIs. The financial statements of the MFIs are downloaded from the MIX website. A drawback in microfinance related research is the low quality of the data. Although the MIX offers the best available set of data and puts serious efforts to increase the quality is the dataset relative young. The dataset contains annual data and is subject to subjectivity due to the voluntary basis and a lack of legislation and authorization in the nations were MFIs are effective. To deal with the low quality of the data this paper first checks till which extent the data makes sense. CAMEL ratings as an efficiency parameter are used SYSTAMTIC RISK The rest of the paper is organized as follows: section 1 reviews the literature of the microfinance industry and the recent developments. Section 2 describes the bank performance methodologies to assess the performance of banks. Section 3 describes a comparison of banking ratios between commercial banks and MFIs. Section 4 discusses the results on the performance drivers of MFIs as a result of the systematic risk of emerging nations. Section 5 concludes the paper with a discussion of the main findings found in this paper The Microfinance Promise The success of the book ‘Creating a world without poverty of Muhammed Yunus (founder of the Grameen bank in 1970 Nobel Prize Winner for the Peace in 2006), increased the awareness and popularity in microfinance. Microfinance refers to the financial products as savings, insurance, transfer services, microcredit loans and other products targeted at low-income clients. From origin is microcredit the key product of MFIs. Loans are used to develop local economies to banish poverty from the low-income communities. The difference between traditional banking and microfinance is the level of creditworthiness of clients. Low-income clients in microfinance lack collateral, structural employment and/or a verifiable credit history almost by definition. This disables them to meet the minimum creditworthiness requirements to gain access to traditional finance products and services. Microfinance clients are therefore often referred as: ‘the unbankable. The lending activities of MFIs are characterized as follows: 1) loans are solely available to members of the MFI; 2) loans are relatively small and generally unsecured; 3) assets and liabilities of the MFI are owned jointly by the members (the clients are the owners), 4) internal monitoring and social sanctions (group liability) are used to enforce the loan contracts (Skees Barnet, 2006). Microfinance institutions thus use group lending methods to guarantee repayment of the financial services which is a substitute for the lack of collateral. This innovative and reversed perspective on banking enables MFIs to provide financial support to the poorest people of the world. This considers 1 billion people worldwide or a potential of 1 billion clients. Reducing poverty worldwide is incorporated in the G8 millennium development goals. Microfinance is considered to be a proven way to realize this millennium goal. Judged against the profit maximization ideology of commercial banks in developed countries have MFIs a dual mis sion; reducing poverty worldwide while being financial sustainable (Drake Rhyne, 2002). The success of microfinance increased the interest of developed nations and the mainstream finance industry. Commercial organizations support initiatives in microfinance as an act of corporate social responsibility. For investors and financials is microfinance attractive for its low correlation with commercial markets. Real life examples are the diversification possibilities that pension and insurance funds find in microfinance (Krauss Walter, 2008). The balance between social and financial returns was studied by the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP) in February 2008. The CGAP identifies a stream of private investors investing in microfinance with no particular interest in the social objective of MFIs since 2006. The entry of private investors in microfinance is seen as one the most important development since institutional investors noticed microfinance in the beginning of 2000. Before this period mainly governments, NGOs and charity funds invested and supported MFIs. In 2006 seventeen billion dollar of loans represented 10% of the potential microfinance market (Swanson, 2007). The money market return in that year was 5.8% in dollars and 3.2% in euros (Reille Foster, 2008). Although multiple sources report extreme returns on equity in microfinance, is investing in microfinance far from riskless. MicroPlace is the first online platform to trade in MFIs developed by Ebay. The average yield on a investment is 3% which matures in 3 years. In order to realize high net return on equity should organizations keep the operational cost low. Especially in the case of MFIs are operating cost high. Still lack of control and transparency makes investing in MFIs risky. Difficulty to comply with regulation standards, if any regulation framework is available MFIs act like banks, by collecting any in developed nations and from local communities and invest them in the area. Criticism is about the lack of transparency and knowledge in the sector. Databases consist of low quality accounting numbers and the absence of legislation, authorization in emerging economies aInsights in this industry will thus not only benefit the poor of the world, but also investors of the world as well as the lessons for the financial systems worldwide. The promise that microfinance offers is a reduction of poverty worldwide, with without any means of charity or subsidy (Cull, Demirguà §-Kunt Morduch, 2007). The poverty line is defined as having less than 2 dollar to spend on a daily basis. Group liability schemes are the response of MFIs to avoid the lack of traceable credibility and liquidity of clients. The group structure of loan repayment proves to secure high rates of repayment. Even with the lack of collateral or means of liquidity of the clients (Cull, Demirguà §-Kunt Morduch, 2007). The backside of this concept is that the industry is characterized by a high amount of transactional and operational cost due to monitoring cost. Also the high geographical distances and spread of clients, without technology standards or infrastructure to bridge these distance, increases the operational costs. A stereotype client of an MFI would be a woman (approximately 97% of all microfinance clients are woman), with a low level or non education. The idea that most clients are entrepreneurs is a biased view. Since microfinance believes in the strength and flexibility of people new entrepreneurial business arise, but everyone with a spendable income of less than 2 dollar a day, could be a client of an MFI. Grootte markt Although the loans and services provided are relative low is the amount of clients enormous. Ownership and governance (Call for legislation and authorization) Technology influences (Mobile phones) Microfinance for investors (brug naar bank performance en systematic risk) Portfolio diversification Return oriented (non academic article) not more than a T bill) Null hypothesis 3: MFIs dont generate excess returns more over equity indices. How to sustain credibility High fixed cost to monitor clients No collateral as a backup in case of default, so MFIs have to define risk management methods in order to control potential default rates. Bank performance From NGO to Commercial bank Null hypothesis 1: MFIs have the same banking ratios compared with commercial banks from G10 nations. Systematic risk of MFIs Impact of macroeconomic indicators on MFIs and visa versa Null Hypothesis 2: MFIs and macroeconomic indicators are not related. Microfinance business and investors MFIs have a different business model than traditional banks. This affects capital structure of the institution. The expectations of investors are also higher. A return hurdle is identified in †¦. Which state that investors expect return on equity of MFIs between 20-25 percent due to additional risk of the underdeveloped markets. Transaction costs are high for investors. Since most MFIs are not publicly tradable investors have to spend relative more time and effort to find, retrieve and monitor funds of MFIs. Exchange rates and effort to buy forgein shares in MFIs The lack of transparency creates information asymmetry Asymmetric information contributes to high transaction costs associated with underwriting, monitoring, and loss adjustment. The very same asymmetric information and transaction costs problems also plague financial markets in rural areas of low-income countries, contributing to high market interest rates. Market interest rates are also affected by default risk. Financial regulations can protect the interests of consumers by reducing information asymmetries. So Camel But for MFIs instead of commercial banks it is very difficult to diversify risk. Since most lenders have a business in agricultural oparetions a nature disaster or a change of policy within the domestic border affects almost the compete loan portfolio. For this reason it is important to understand the underlying sustamtic risk of an MFI with a nation. Bank Performance Measurement Measurement of the financial performance of banks increases the transparency of the banking sector in various ways. First, the performance indicators are warning signals for troubled banks. This increases the safety of the banking system. Secondly the indicators are useful tools for allocation decisions for investors. Especially in the case of MFIs, investors lack perfect information. Compared with developed nations the information asymmetry is greater, since commercial banks from industrialized countries have easy accessible and reliable performance indicators. Monitoring MFI performance decreases the information asymmetry gap for investors, which helps MFIs to attract more funds and increase their performances. A performance model assesses the efficiency of the organization. Efficiency is the ratio of the effective or useful output to the total input of a system. Different methods are available to measure the efficiency of banks. Statistical and intelligent techniques to model bank performance models are extensively reviewed by Kumar Ravi (2009). The most common approaches are data envelopment analysis (DEA) (Liu, 2009) and CAMEL analysis (Cole Gunther, 2008). DEA is a non parametric method which uses linear programming to measure multiple in- and outputs of business units. The business units are compared through creating an efficient frontier of best performing business units. DEA is mainly used to asses the internal efficiency of a bank. On-site examinations are the most precise way to monitor the performance of a bank. In developed nations are banks assessed between every 12-18 months. The ratings are known to CAMELS ratings according to their functional areas: capital adequacy, asset quality, management quality, earnings strength and liquidity. The performance of each area is rated on a 5 point scale (1 strong performance, 2 satisfactory performance, 3 performance that is flawed to some degree, 4 marginal performance that is significantly below average, 5 unsatisfactory performance that is critically deficient and in need of immediate action). From the 5 areas is a composite overall rating constructed. The Commercial Bank Examination Manual produced by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System qualifies an institution consequently as; 1 an institution that is basically sound in every respect, 2 an institution that is fundamentally sound but has modest weaknesses, 3 an institution with financial, operatio nal, or compliance weaknesses that give cause for supervisory concern, 4 an institution with serious financial weaknesses that could impair future viability, 5 an institution with critical financial weaknesses that render the probability of failure extremely high in the near term. Although the CAMEL approach is widely used, Cole Gunther (2008) point out that the reliability of the ratings decays rapidly once published. To deal with the diminishing value of CAMEL ratings, they offer a method to create CAMEL rating based on accounting data. The off-site examination of the CAMEL rating performs better after two quarters since the last on site assessment. The CAMEL approach is a suitable starting point to asses MFI performance, since MFI data is only published annually. The rating enables to benchmark multiple MFIs and filter credible and well performing institutions from the dataset. CAMEL offers thereby the possibility to incorporate the social objective of MFIs within the performance model. Besides CAMEL are seven approaches established to measure MFI performance. The Global Development Research center describes all approaches which find their origin from private and commercial initiatives to rank MFIs. The ACCION Camel approach is comparable to the measuremen t as suggested above. An overview of the systems: PEARLS rating system. This is a rating system developed for credit unions by the World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU). ACCION Camel. The evaluation guideline for MFIs developed by ACCION International. Girafe rating system. Developed by PlaNetFinance. MicroRate. Developed by Damian von Stauffenberg of MicroRate. MicroBanking Bulletin/ MicroBanking Standards Project. Funded by the Consultative Group to Assist the Poorest (CGAP). The Philippine Coalition for Micro-finance Standards.Developed a set of performance standards to serve as guidelines or benchmarks to assess the operations of NGOs involved in microfinance. Institutional Performance Standards and PlansDeveloped by the Committee of Donor Agencies for Small Enterprise Development and United Nations Capital Development Fund. CAMEL is suggested as most suitable for investors. The reliance on qualitative measurement through interviews with the MFIs management is a drawback of the above mentioned methods. Although interviews are useful to assess the performance of an institution, it does not allow investors to asses the institution based on free available information (for example from MIX markets). The CAMEL approach offers an objective evaluation method to assess the performance on quantitative measures. CAMEL is thereby widely recognized as a well performance rating method of financial institutions. The areas of the CAMEL approach are defined, but the indicators to generate the rating of the areas vary per organization or study. Microfinance has a different banking perspective compared with traditional banking. To adjust for this basic principle the set of accounting indicators for the CAMEL model is different, compared with models of traditional banks. ACCION is a rating agency which uses CAMEL to measure the performance of MFIs. A combination of qualitative (interviews) and quantitative (accounting data) analysis is used to rate the institutions. The present study solely uses quantitative measures to assess MFI performance. The indicators are adjusted to the amount of the gross loan portfolio to adjust for company size. Capital adequacy is measured by the amount of total equity and the amount of leverage within the organizations. A higher amount of equity reduces the probability of the occurrence of insolvency. A higher reliance on debt increases the financial pressure on the institution. Leverage reduces therefore the overall CAMEL score. Asset quality indicates the quality of the loans. The write of ratio of the loans and the not winnable loans in 30 days, reduces the quality of the assets. The ACCION model and the model of Cole Gunther (2008) do not include a quantitative measure of management. The current study measures the way the management uses the financial resources efficiently to provide as many loans with the same resources. Better management should be able to reach more clients (possibly with a higher amount of an average loan). Operational self-sufficiency is a measure of overall financial performance of the management. The ratio of operational expenses and loan portfolio presents how effective the management distributes loans to clients. This serves as a proxy for the objective of MFIs to reduce poverty. Secondly is the amount of active borrowers an absolute measure of how many clients the management reaches compared to the financial resources. The average loan balance divided by the GNI of the domestic nation indicates how much a MFI offers to clients within the local context. Earnings strength is the most important for return oriented investors. Return on assets and equity are a widely accepted measures of financial performance. Profit margin is included as a profitability measure of the services offered by the institution. Liquidity is a measure of how well an institution deals with short term cash flows and needs. Unfortunately the database only provides annual information of balance sheets. Specific (short term) cash flow information is not available. Liquidity represents the ability of an institution to meet obligations as they come due. In order to create a proxy for liquidity, data is gathered to determine till which extent institutions can meet loan requests of clients. Two ratios are calculated. The first represents the growth of the assets compared with the growth in the total loan portfolio. The second ratio focuses on the growth of equity compared with the growth in the total loan portfolio. If the ratios are above one, institutions are able to meet the obligations of new loans on a short term basis. An overview of the indicators used in the present study is given in table X, together with the expected effect on the overall CAMEL score. BEKIJK CLEAM Winker Tank, 2008 Exponential weighting is used to include past performances of institutions into the model. Other CAMEL models do not incorporate the time dimension, but past performances are a reliable proxy for future performance. Capital adequacy is for example calculated as: CA1 and CA2 are the camel scores on the indicators as discussed above, is the weight of the indicator within the specified CAMEL area. This will be normally equally distributed over the amount of parameters. The is the degree to which the past years taken into the equation. N is the amount of years of available data of MFI performance. The overall CAMEL score is constructed by an equal or adjusted weighting of the five performance areas. The sums of the weights of the indicators have a maximum of 1. Regarding the social objectives of MFIs a distinction is made between solely return oriented investors and more social oriented investors. A customized CAMEL rating on the preferences of an investor is created by shifting the weights of the areas, yielding the CAMEL rating which reflects the preferences of the investor. Within this study we will use an equal weight distributing, a distribution which stresses the financial performance (ES) and a rating which focuses on the social objectives (MQ). Two words of caution have to be made with the use of the current model. The comparability of the ratings is not straight forward when investors adjust weights to their preferences. Traditional CAMEL models use always an equal weighting over the areas, to grant comparability. Secondly, in line with Cole Gunther (2008) the CAMEL ratings are a not interchangeable with the CAMEL based on on-site visits. For investors the model designed for MFIs provides a reasonable indicator to determine the quality of MFIs on various aspects and should be seen complementary with the on site visits. Summarizing, CAMEL is used as a starting point to measures the financial performance of MFIs. Specific indicators are chosen to adjust for the special case of a microfinance institution. The ACCION CAMEL model provided a first start for the current model. The solely quantitative model incorporates proposes a measure for effective management of an MFI, as a reflection of the social objective of MFIs. Secondly the model also considers past performance of MFIs with the use of exponential weighting. Thirdly the model enables to provide weights according to the investor preferences. For MFIs the model presents indicators which could be embedded in the MFIs performance goals. This way MFIs could attract more funds necessary through establishing a better rating and so, become more attractive for investors. In the appendix are the CAMEL rating for the indicators specified. Systematic risk in microfinance Sentivity to market risk as a extension of the CAMEL model. Descriptive statics are used to compare the performance of MFIs with commercial banks. Banking ratios of commercial banks of the G10 are used as a benchmark. The comparison of banking ratios provides a glance of the performance of the MFIs. The return on assets (RoA) and on equity (RoE) is compared to give an indication of the profitability of MFIs. The outstanding loan portfolios and write off ratios, provide a view of the riskiness MFIs, since micro credit represents the largest product class with microfinance. Leverage is used as an additional proxy for the riskiness of the organizations. Operational costs are compared to get a feeling for the efficiency of MFIs. According to Krauss Walter (2008) is the performance of MFIs mainly driven by macroeconomic factors within the domestic borders. The drivers of the financial performance of MFIs are studied with the use of the arbitrage pricing model (APT). The asset pricing model is used to determine the risk premiums of the macro economic factors of MFIs within the nation. Roll Ross (1995) find that the return on assets or equity consists of a system of risk factors. The systematic risk factors are macroeconomic factors. The expected return on a portfolio of assets is given by The betas on the factors represent a risk premium for a systematic risk factor. The alpha, as a residual idiosyncratic factor is canceling out in large portfolios. By using the linear multi factor model an indication of the impact of the macroeconomic factors is revealed on the performance of MFIs. The factors incorporated in the model are the growth of GDP, GNI, inflation and the penetration of the financial sector within the nation. In line with the