Sample Essay on World War III

The Start of World War III: Kim Jong-un versus Donald Trump

With or without the help of Donald Trump, Kim Jong-un has the capability to plunge the entire planet into its World War III inside a century. Indubitably this one will cause more harm and destruction than the Great War, where even the use of aircraft was in its early stages, and chemical weapons were not used. It could also be more dangerous than the World War II that ended with the first where nuclear weapons were heavily used.

Currently, Donald Trump has played a pivotal role in inciting the start of World War III where he has installed anti-missile defense against the north inside South Korea. Trump is trying to copy what President Kennedy did in 1962 during the Cuban missile crisis. Note that President Reagan did the same thing during 1980s cold war: practicing brinkmanship, demonstrating strength and displaying resolve.

Just like Kennedy and Reagan, it is easy for Trump to prevail. Nevertheless, it not that trick to watch how things would spin out of control in a blink of an eye. Since this will make Kim feel that he is abandoned and exposed at the same time, he could try to retaliate by sending off a few missiles of his own, perhaps targeting Japan which is always a popular point of the target. Evident to the recent form in Syria and Afghanistan, Trump will strike back using a surgical and proportionate strike on some facilities belonging to North Korea. The North Korean will be forced to sink a South Korean warship. In the process, some North Koreans will manage to get themselves shot to ribbons, chucking another missile over the border and it kills all the American troops. This will force Trump to retaliate by escalating the bombing of government building. With all these happenings, Kim will see his regime critically threatened, having no other alternative and nothing to lose. Having a great support from Russian and Chinese diplomacy, Kim will unleash his massive conventional force, trying to get the Americans surrender and leave him in power.

Military Might and Powerful Military Forces in World War III

The fact is that there is no shortage of weapons. In those two parts of the world, you come across the world’s biggest and most powerful military forces. The United States and Russia are now content to be more of an observer than a player. Believing what Trump says, it is so worrying to publicly chastise North Korea while pushing for harsher sanctions. Remember that there is South Korea too rapidly growing its armed troops, and of course North Korea, with a massive army and its nuclear and missile technology it has managed to build. Even though Japan us technically impaired to self-defense, the country has substantial armed forces. Note that it would not take an extended period for this superior abundant power to build a nuclear technology weapon once the need arises.

Kim is not crazy, and he is also not a nutty dictator as portrayed in team America; he is just like his father. Kim is ruthless and paranoid, as he openly eliminates all his rivals and critics. Since he has nothing to lose, once the Americans decide to depose him just like what they did with Saddam and Gaddafi, he believes that he will be killed publicly. Because of this, nothing can stop him from executing a few million Japanese and Koreans plus a few thousand Yankee soldiers.

Clearly, this is where the danger for President Donald lies. The US president has cleverly made some augments that America does not want to embrace change. However, let’s find out of what use are those words to Kim. The only reason Kim needs his nuclear and enjoys playing with them is precise to freak out other leaders around him, leaders who care less about human life and prosperity of their countries. What the northern Korea leader sees is the world where developed nations like America, Japan, South Korea and even China or Russia will try to eliminate you if you so dump such that you disarm yourself or let them tamper with your weapon program. So according to Kim, this is the main reason as to why Gaddafi and Saddam were executed in cold blood. However, our primary concern should be why both the Iranians and Kim are still sitting pretty.

The threat is not about Trump personally. It is what any American president is bound to do once they feel that the vital security of the great nation is at stake. Essentially, what the article talks about here is the ultimate sacrifice made by Japan and South Korea to eliminate some threats of a North Korean missile killing American citizens in some next five years to come. The danger can be assessed as possible, and it might shift over time. However is seems implausible to vanish on its preference, for example through massive economic collapse. Nevertheless, this is never a good prospect that any president can feel contended with. No president is capable of allowing a hostile nation to be in a position to attack San Francisco with a nuclear-tipped ICBM if it has an opportunity to stop it from taking place.

If President Donald Trump felt that he had no other option other than making a surgical strike, the consequences of his action are incalculable. Just like Kim has done in the past, Trump could have opted for a low-level act of aggression. For instance, he would opt to sink a North Korean warship or drop a big conventional bomb on a North Korean nuclear facility. It is not possible to assume that Kim could respond in a kind way, worsen matters or just shout a lot. If escalation starts, when will it go critical? How many people will lose their lives in the process and how much damage could it bring to the global economy?

CONCLUSION

The cost of human life and treasure would be unprecedented is this is bound to happen. The current world, apart from the odd hermit nation like North Korea, is a more interdependent than ever before in various ways including social, political and economic aspects. This alone could make World War III the worst ever global conflict.

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Porter’s Five Forces Analysis on Uber

Are you a student looking for write my economics assignment on Porter’s five forces analysis on Uber or any other disruptive company? Our homework writers assist students write high quality case studies, term papers, essays, assignments or homework on management, marketing or economics papers at affordable prices. In our efforts to showcase the writing and research skills of our writers, we regularly publish papers on the most sought after topics. This post presents Porters five forces analysis on uber company and explains reasons the company is so successful. Uber is hailed as a major disruptive force in the taxi and logistic business. The company that was started as a black car service has grown to become the biggest taxi hailing service operating in 58 countries and with a market valuation of over over $60billion

Michael Porter’s five forces analysis assists in analyzing of the level of competition and business strategy development that shapes every industry and helps determine an industry’s weaknesses and strengths. It draws upon industrial organization economics to derive five forces that determine the competitive intensity and therefore the attractiveness of an industry. The five forces framework works by looking at the high points of five essential elements that affect competition. These fall under Supplier Power, buyer power, competitive rivalry, threat of substitutions and potential new entrants.

Understanding the network channels, potential growth and attractiveness of a company in the transportation industry demands the use of Porter’s five forces analysis. Uber is one of the fastest growing omnipresent ride-sharing transportation company that has managed to command a significant presence in the main parts of the world spreading by over 60 countries since its inception in 2009. Within the few years of existence, the organization has succeeded in capturing the loyalty of its customers by catering to the on-demand rides of individuals of all caliber of society. This has, in turn, enabled Uber to expand its market share and provision of better services. With the enormous glory and popularization surrounding the company, Porter’s Five Forces Analysis brings to light the strengths and weakness the firm possesses in the industry in various countries.

1. The potential threat of new market entrants:
A company’ position can be immensely affected by the ability of other organizations to enter their market. The potential risks that the enterprise face are as follows;

Setting itself in the technological arena, Uber aims to provide a linking bridge between customers and transport providers. This market requires a higher amount of initial capital to start up, and though Uber’s founders parted with a substantial amount of capital, upcoming rivals are utilizing lesser initial capital to jump start their operations thereby quickly penetrating the market.
Though Uber’s policy is to freely offer their software to willing clients, these services can however easily be swapped at zero charges. As the demand to balance costs become imminent, Uber is not invulnerable to raising rates, making it easier for other organizations to penetrate the industry. The ease of service swap by customers is a strong force because it defines the firm’s survival rate in the sector.
Various problems have popped up in Uber operations; legal issues, negative press around several areas and even fines by government authorities such as Germany, France, India, Thailand, Netherlands and United Kingdom has made the market to be under controversies thereby making new entrants very cautious stepping into the business. This has at least for a short period, reduced the threat of new entrants into the market who must work in overcoming all these challenges.
As a technology-based company, it is not easy for Uber to stop any form of imitation by any other transportation firm. This means that it is easy for the concept to be copied by new ride-sharing companies and other competitors thereby to not only operate in the same way as Uber but to also charge less for the same distance.

2. The threat of substitutions:
A Substitute is a well know fear that is experienced in a competitive business environment. In the transportation industry, there are numerous member organizations that can quickly provide a replacement for Uber services. With the service quality that Uber provides, taxi services, for instance, is the closest opponent and a potential substitute emerging from the traditional transportation industry. Taxi service is traditional to towns with ride-sharing operations because of both its lower-cost and efficiency, and user-friendly designing. As such, their abundance is enough to curb Uber from elevating the service fees. It is noteworthy that due to price sensitivity, a minor rise of Uber rates can result in customer taking on the services of its closest adversaries and alternatives. Moreover, due to the presence of other public means of transport like trains, private cars and even self-driving cars (Google Cars) that offer similar services can threaten Uber’s existence or operations. A constant threat of substitutes is currently a weak force in the case of Uber.

3. Supplier Bargaining Power

This is the ability of suppliers to drive up the prices of a company’ inputs. The threat of supplies to Uber is experienced below:

One of the leading suppliers of the transportation industry is the availability of drivers. Uber does not own vehicle among its fleets. As such, the company’s business model is mostly dependent on drivers owning cars. Regrettably, the concentration of this group of suppliers to work for Uber is not very high due to the stringent requirements needed to be hired by Uber. Uber utilize a subcontracting policy for its employment process to individuals that meet the terms of use of their web application. It is also tough to substitute individual drivers as they are given the freedom to choose between the organization and rivals. This results in drivers negotiating for better attention to the company’s expense. Therefore, it is undeniable that the suppliers have a stronger power in impacting Uber’s performance.
Oil and gas suppliers is another major provider. The oil price has been plunged since 2015, and the lowest level has reached less than $30 in the year 2017. Highly fluctuation of the price of such an essential component to company’s transportation industry brings a high risk to the market because of the level of uncertainty and non-predictability of oil to powers vehicles. Suppliers of these components thereby have a high bargaining power in the operations of Uber.

4. Threat of buyers: High- Buyer Bargaining Power
The strength of customers can affect the performance of a firm by lowering the prices placed on the products and services.

Uber’s clienteles are sensitive to price variations due to the existence of alternatives and rivals. As the market grows bigger, the number of opponents bringing customers more choice also becomes larger thus makes the switching cost for customers comparatively low. This is because Uber application software is not only free but just requires a client’ registration. Customers can therefore freely choose between Uber, Curb, Lyft, or other emerging ride-sharing entities at no cost.
The number ownership of private cars has experiences a huge rise during the past few years, and though the parking problems have been more severe than ever before, this has not stopped individuals from desiring the status attached to one owning a car. This as an alternative means that the demand for Uber services is low.
In light of these factors, the buyers’ bargaining power has limited the amount of income for the firm, hence solidifying it as an active force.

5. The degree of rivalry:
This is the strength of competition in the industry. The trend of concentration of the industry appears to be higher than previous years, and the existing companies in the market compete with both suppliers (car drivers) and customers.

Though there are some competitors such as Curb and Didi Chuxing, Lyft is considered the principal competitor of Uber. Lyft has an almost indistinguishable business ideas and procedures to that of Uber. Not only are the two firms contending for market share but also the suppliers. A modern business setting demands organizations target a customer base within a given geographical locations to cut on the operation cost. This is the incident for Lyft and Uber. Uber has a deep-rooted business system and massive capital investment. In essence, it is a market trail-blazer, but small variation strategies limit the firm’s potential. Competition is a weakening force given Uber’s supremacy. Uber is indeed a dominant force in the ride-sharing industry. However, there is a need for improvement of its innovative strategies to gain a competitive edge. The transport sector especially the US has many alternates and competing entities. To survive, it is vital for Uber to lower the cost of operation to avoid raising customer charges.

It is not identified what Uber’s future is. Google Cars are a serious threat to its success. Uber should address the flaws found in the SWOT and turn weaknesses into strength. The team must work and exploit the opportunities and avoid the shortcomings.

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How to Write Good Nursing Capstone Paper

Are you looking for tips on writing good nursing capstone paper? Every nursing student is required to write a capstone paper as a partial fulfillment to attaining a nursing degree in American, British, Australian, Oman or Canadian colleges. It can be quite frustrating for a student who has not mastered the art of writing capstone proposals and projects. However, this article seeks to impart necessary knowledge in developing a quality nursing paper.

How to write Good Nursing Capstone Paper: Pitfalls to avoid

When writing a nursing capstone paper, there are some predictable pitfalls that learners tend to make every time. Understanding all these potential nursing scholarly pitfalls before you start writing your paper can go a long way in assisting you to evade them successfully. Then, you will have all the knowledge of writing an good nursing capstone paper that you will be proud of and at the same time impress your instructor.

Guidelines for writing a good nursing capstone paper

Usually the final stage of your nursing studies is writing a nursing capstone paper. The capstone proposal and final project will show all the problems addressed, step you take to solve the issue, the means, and equipment used to measure the along with your recommendations. Here are few basic guidelines to assist you when writing the final report.

Format your report well
Make a summary before starting
Make sure you include all sources on your page of reference
Write clearly and concisely
Proofread

One of the necessary requirements for completing the majority of nursing programs is doing a capstone project. The capstone project offers an excellent opportunity for learners to implement skills and knowledge into practice. A portion of the project involves writing a paper which is a written presentation of your whole project.

The presentation introduces all the problems that your project is tailored at solving and shows in a detailed manner how the project is intended to achieve that. Some of the project details to be included comprise, tools used, time involved and methods used in analyzing the results. Following proven guidelines, you can as well include the project results, objectives obtained, unanticipated results and ultimately a recommendation based on the project degree of success. Note that the capstone paper will represent your entire project. As a result, you need to make sure you present a well-written paper for your project to be successful.

Lack of research before selecting a thesis statement

In some occasions, when stressed or busy, learners tend to rush when choosing a subject for a paper. Therefore, their concentration and connection with the subject matter can be affected greatly, and unavoidable the effect is evident in their writing. Doing a thorough research and selecting a topic you can connect are critical steps in writing an effective thesis statement, and ultimately an good nursing capstone paper.

Lack of a strong thesis statement

The moment you pick a subject, the next step should be creating a strong thesis statement. This is an essential, foundational element for a valid paper. One assurance of setting up a successful argument is that you take a definite point of view. The thesis statement must be clear and able to express one main idea, and it should be about the subject that permits further discussion. A good thesis statement must be genuine, compelling and gives the reader the urge to continue reading.

Try to make appropriate connections between thesis statement and supporting elements
The format of a good research paper flows from the thesis statement to the supporting elements, which includes the body of the article. A successful research paper must have a sustained inquiry and an interesting discussion of a perfectly-defined subject. Your paper should transition effectively from your thesis statement to your supporting statement.

Present strong and relevant data to support your statements

All the supporting statements in your paper must be backed up by appropriate sources which can authenticate the point of view given by the thesis statement. All your supporting statements must flesh out your unique thesis statement and must also have a basis in strong, accurate data that you cite and the reader can verify without difficulties.

Cite your sources properly

In your research paper, you need to give proper credit to all data and reference you use in your paper. Specific requirements for citing the sources can vary depending on the instructions given. Whether you are working in the APA writing style or any other format, every format comes with its particular parameters and rules for citing sources. Make sure you carefully go through the instructions given for you to cite sources within the required guidelines. Luckily, there is new software available that can assist you in this area of writing research papers. Whether it is APA, MLA style format or any other, the formatting software can be of great help in the citation process.

Note that the capstone project might take a very long period to be completed. The process begins once you present your proposal, it gets approved and then you receive the results that satisfy all your expectations. Simple usual mistakes on a written paper that come as a result of rushing to complete your project or negligence have been the major downfall of many projects that would have otherwise been successful. Some of the common mistakes made when writing an good nursing capstone paper include:

Failure to follow proper paper format, note that the majority of learning institutions provide simple outlines to follow, and past papers from former students can be used as a reference.
Using long sentences and unnecessary big terminologies in your writing: this is a tactic sometimes intended to impress, but that never does. Note that you can impress more using clear and concise sentences that get direct to the point.
Failure to proofread your paper, try as much as possible to avoid simple grammatical errors and spelling mistakes by proofreading your paper before handing it over.

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How to Improve Memory of Learners

How to Improve Memory of Learners Through Proper Nutrition

Are you a teacher and would like to improve memory of learners? or are you a student struggling with memory lapses? If yes, most likely you have been taking poor diet. Studying is an activity that utilizes both mental and physical strength. Lack of energy as a result of poor diet more often lead to loss of memory, fatigue and lethargy contributing to poor academic performance. Studies show that schools with quality nutrition meal plans report enhanced student learning due to improve memory of learners . It is evident that some foods tend to be good for your brains. Super foods and certain foods increase mental performance, improve memory and cognitive functions, as a result your concentration levels in school improve and content retention is enhanced. This leads to better academic performance in class.

Top 10 Proper Nutrition and Food to Improve Memory of Learners

Students require to be always mentally active and alert in order to quickly acquire and synthesis information. Proper nutrition play a key role in boosting brain power and memory functions. Thus, our biology essay paper writers were encouraged to research and round up ten brain boosting foods that learners should eat and feed both the brain and body. With a mixture of fruits, oils, chocolate, and vegetables, there must be something everyone will love. We encourage school administration to incorporate some of the foods in their dietary plan to improve memory of learners.

Avocados

This is one of the healthiest fruits available. Even though avocados have always got a bad reputation due to their high-fat content, it is important to bear in mind that these green avocados are packed with mono-saturated fats that help maintain your blood sugar at a lower level and also helping your skin glow.

These fruits contain both vitamin K and folate that helps in preventing a blood clot in the brain which in turn protects your body against stroke. These vitamins also assist in improving the cognitive function, both concentration, and memory.

These green powerhouses are also rich in vitamin B, and vitamin C. notes that your body has no capability to store these minerals and they must be replenished daily. On top of that, Avocados have the highest protein and lowest sugar content than any other fruit. Note that their creamy texture makes them a perfect supplement to smoothies and a replacement for fats in baked foods.

Beets

You will be surprised to know that Beets are one of the most nutritious root vegetables you can ever eat. Beets are good for reducing inflammation, help in removing toxins from your blood and they have high cancer-protecting antioxidants content. The natural nitrates contained in these root vegetables play a great role in boosting the blood flow to the brain which helps boost your mental performance. Also, when doing tough exercise, beets will help in enhancing energy and performance levels.

Blueberries

Indeed marvelous things are presented in small packages, and this is true with blue barriers. Blueberries have great health benefits, and they have a natural candy taste. To start with, blueberries are rich in antioxidants such as fiber, vitamin K, and vitamin C. since they have high level of gallic acid, these fruits are ideal for protecting your brain from disintegration and stress. You can have your daily dosage of brain berries in omega blueberry smoothie or pumpkin blueberry pancakes.

Bone broth

This is the ultimate food for curing your gut and also healing your brain. Bone broth is an ancient food that has numerous health benefits including, they boost the immune system, help in overcoming leaky gut, help to overcome food allergies and improve the health of your joints.

They have high collagen content that helps in reducing intestinal inflammation, and healing of amino acids to keep your immune system to function well and contribute to boosting your memory. The majority of doctors will prescribe bone broth to their patients since they assist your body heal from inside out.

Broccoli

Broccoli is among the best brain booster foods that God gave to mankind. This is because their vitamin K and choline content is high and this helps in keeping your memory sharp. It also contains vitamin C such that one glass will offer you with 150 percent of your prescribed daily intake. It has high fiber content meaning that you will feel satisfied quickly.

Celery

This is one of the vegetable foods that has few calories, and for that reason, it provided a lot of health benefits. It is rich in antioxidants whereby polysaccharides act as a natural anti-inflammatory and can play a great role in alleviating signs associated with inflammation such as irritable bowel syndrome and joint pain.

For the reason that its nutrient dense nature, having lots of vitamins and nutrients with few calories, celery is the perfect alternative if you want to lose some weight. While consuming the celery stalks, don’t skip its leaves and seeds since they both provide additional health benefits and they also have great taste in things such as soups and fries.

Coconut oil

It is evident that coconut oil is the most versatile foods you can ever get. With numerous coconut oil cures and uses, there is nothing that coconut oil can’t do. And the oil is also beneficial to the health of your brain. They act as a natural anti-inflammatory, destroying cells that cause inflammation. The coconut plays a great role in preventing memory loss as you age and suppress harmful bacteria that found in your gut.

Dark chocolate

Note all chocolates are created differently and because of that, dark chocolate is the best option for you. Dark chocolate is loaded with flavanols that are comprised of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties. They also play a great role in lowering your blood pressure and improving blood flow to both the brain and heart. To get the best results, just avoid milk and white chocolate and go for a minimally processed dark chocolate that has more than 70 percent cocoa.

Egg yolks

Egg yolks are rich in choline that is responsible for fetal brain growth for expectant mothers. The choline also helps in breaking down bethene, a substance that produces hormones that make you feel happy. If you have been avoiding to eat eggs because of cholesterol issues, here is the good news. Research has revealed that consuming eggs has no negative impact on the cholesterol level of healthy people and at times it can help in raising good cholesterol levels.

Besides, eggs are one of the cheapest sources of protein available. All you need to do is make sure that you buy organic free-range eggs.

Green leafy vegetables

According to the recent studies, regular consumption of green leafy brain foods such as kales, Swiss chard, and romaine lettuce can help in keeping dementia away. In the research, which assessed the eating behaviors and mental capability of above 950 adults for five years. The study showed that those adults that consumed a serving of leafy vegetables twice a day encountered slower mental deterioration that the ones who ate none. The same results were achieved even when the factors such as age, education and family history of dementia were considered.

Green leafy veggies also contain vitamin A and K that play a vital role in fighting inflammation and keeping the bones strong.

After much research, our biology essay paper writers compiled a list of foods and superfoods to improve memory of learners. Besides reading, the article will be of help to students of nursing, medicine, sports science and nutrition and dietetics.

How to Write Financial Analysis Paper

Are you doing an MBA degree or a finance related course? if yes, then you should keenly read our post on how to write financial analysis paper. In this article you will learn essentials of writing a winning financial analysis paper. Our professional economics essay writing service will present key secrets to researching and writing a company or financial analysis that appeals and informs the targeted audience.

Even in your professional work, particularly those who become equities researchers and investment analysts, you will be required to write and present financial analysis papers to management or investors. It is therefore imperative to learn and understand the format and analytical techniques to utilize in the paper.

Learn Key Tips On How To Write Financial Analysis Paper

Writing a detailed financial analysis of a company is very crucial since it is one of the tools used in determining whether to invest in the business. Note that there is no particular technique of writing a financial analysis, and the presentation styles will always differ. However, it is good to ensure that you include the key components in any financial analysis you prepare. Bear in mind that the financial health of a company can only be determined once all the components have been carefully reviewed.

A financial analysis paper provides information about the financial health of a company. Even though the history of a company can be summarized by a financial statement and stock performance, the financial analysis paper tries to incorporate all these information and more into a comprehensive and coherent system. Lenders, investors and financial analyst also use a detailed financial analysis, to find out if a company has the capability to deliver a good return on investment.

Executive summary

Note that this is the section of the paper that includes the most significant research from a financial analysis in a brief, easy-to-read format. The summary condenses the information presented in the whole report; comprising the insinuations those data bring to the industry and the company at large. In most cases, this section includes a concise summary of the firm’s mission, anticipated outlook, current performance, and history. On top of that, the section comprises an overview of the company’s industry, competition and market conditions.

Financial statements

The collection of financial declarations of a company is a core part of a financial analysis paper. The financial statement includes the balance sheet, equity statement, income statement and cash flow statement. The work of the balance sheet is to show the firm’s liabilities, allocation of properties and the equity of each shareholder. The income statements will outline the income, expenses, and profit or loss of a company. On the other hand, the investment statement will show all the changes in shareholder’s equity. The cash flow statements will explain where the business obtained its cash and how it is spending the cash.

Industry analysis

It is evident that no company exist in a vacuum, and for that reason, a financial analysis paper should comprise an examination of the firm’s industry. The report must include comparisons between the company’s health and that of its competitors, and it will show the company’s market share and prominence in the industry. These features assist investors to find out if the business is competitive in its industry and if it would make a productive investment.

Financial ratios

A financial ratio is meant to disclose such aspects like the liquidity of the firm, debt amount and efficiency of the company. The current liquidity ratio can be defined as the proportion of a company’s current assets to its current liabilities. On the other hand, the debt ratio is the ratio of the firm’s total debt to its total equity. Note that the return on equity ratio is the one that weighs the income of a company against the equity of its shareholders. The price to earnings ratio can be derived by dividing the existing market price by the after-tax profits per share.

Sample Essay Collapse of Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock

Sample Essay on the Collapse of Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock

In the year 2008, two financial behemoths were pushed to oblivion after they were declared bankrupt. The collapse of Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock, which was headquartered in London marked the beginning of the global financial crisis. Eichengreen et al., (2009) observe that the fall of Lehman Brothers was the direct cause of the global recession, as the effects of the fall spread through contagion and spillover effects to the rest of the global economies.

Other scholars opine that the collapse of Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock accelerated and intensified the global financial crisis. The two financial institutions were key players in their respective countries, the United Kingdom and the United States of America, however, the two financial giants failed in the year 2008. Reasons cited for the failure of these financial behemoths are strategy miscalculation and financial weaknesses.

These essay seeks to evaluate, compare and contract strategic and financial reasons for the collapse of Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock, both which were operating different business models and in different geographical locations and finish with outlining what major world financial institutions should learn from the collapse of the two financial behemoths.

Overview of the Collapse of Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock

Overview of Lehman Brothers and its Collapse

According to Swedberg (2010) Lehman Brothers was founded by German immigrants Henry Lehman, Emanuel Lehman and Mayer Lehman in 1850 in Montgomery. The growth and prosperity of Lehman Brothers was buttressed by a bludgeoning U.S economy at that time, which aided the financial institution to become an international financial industry player. Through the years until its collapse, Lehman Brothers were faced with numerous challenges, with the most glaring being the First World War, the Great Depression of the 1930 and the Second World War, however, it was unable to withstand the housing bubble burst of 2007, which eventually brought the financial giant to its knees. Levine (2010) observes that in the year 2003, the United States of America was experiencing a housing boom and Lehman Brothers plunged into the housing business by acquiring five mortgage lenders. Initially, the new acquisitions, which were dealing in securitisation of mortgages, were highly profitable and growing faster than other business lines, lifting profits for the company by over 56% in two years, 2004 to 2006. However, crack emerged in the mortgage business with the burst of the housing bubble in the year 2007-2008, ending the bull run of the company stock and growth.

Overview of Northern Rock and its Collapse

Northern Rock started as a building society in 1955 following the merger between Northern Countries Permanent Building Society, which was formed in 1850, and Rock Building Society, which was formed in 1865. The merger gave rise to a new entity Northern Rock Building Society that later merged with small building societies. Northern Rock was listed on the London Stock Exchange in the year 2007 and had its headquarters located in North Eastern part of England. According to Shin (2009) Northern Rock core businesses before the collapse in the year 2008 was in residential mortgage lending, retail savings and insurance products. Therefore, Northern Rock was involved in three business lines, receiving deposits, lending mortgage loans and selling insurance products. The future of Northern Rock was inherent in the success or failure of its business-funding model. Following the conversion of Northern Rock Building Society into a fully-fledged bank, the United Kingdom North Eastern based financial institution started offering a wide range of banking services but still maintained the residential mortgage lending business. Capitalising on its two businesses, Cash flow from the banking business was channeled to fund loans in the mortgage business. Ungureanu and Cocris (2008) opine that Northern Rock would use the cheap deposit and offer them to consumers as mortgage loans at high interest rates. Katie (2012) explains that with increased fortunes the residential business segment and financial innovations, Northern Rock gave prominence to the residential market through creating mortgage-backed securities. Additionally, it shifted its focus from cheap deposits to interbank loans and other short term funding mechanisms from the money market and capital markets to sustain the residential market business, which is what caused cracks in Northern Rock. With the drying up of funds from financial markets falling the bubble burst and lack of confidence in the institution due to its subprime mortgage business, which at that time was in deep mess in the United States of America, depositors ran into a panic mode resulting into a bank run, drying up Northern Rock’s liquidity.

Strategic Reasons for the Collapse of Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock

Contemporary business environment, both in product and service, market is characterised by cutthroat competition that threatens the very survival of firms whether big or small. In order to stay afloat, Delios (2012) asserts that business managers devise both short term and long-term strategies in order to remain competitive or gain competitive advantage; consequently, a business strategy is an indispensable tool both in product and service market. Since financial institutions are driven by profit maximisation and growth attainment, managers of financial institutions devise business strategies, both in the short term and long-term business in order to drive profitability and growth both in the long term and short-term goals. However, strategies do not always yield intended purposes, as constant changes in market conditions may render them blunt and obsolete.

Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock had to pursue strategies to gain a competitive edge in the financial industry, more so to benefit from the boom in the housing market in the early years of 200s both in the United States of America and in the United Kingdom. According to Duta, Caplan and Lawson (2010) among the reasons that point to the collapse of Lehman Brothers are excessive exposure to the subprime business, fraud, poor credit risk rating by credit rating companies, complex company structure and overall company business strategy. Barkhausen (2010) observes that Lehman Brothers in the year 2006 made its intention to pursue an aggressive growth business strategy. As a result, Barkhausen (2010) expounds that the once financial behemoth “switched from a low risk brokerage model to a capital intensive banking model”. Lehman Brothers, therefore, reoriented their business strategy to a business that was involved in buying assets and storing them awaiting their appreciation in value instead of channeling them to a third party. The financial giant in pursuing its aggressive business strategy started buying into real estate, leverage lending and private equity, which are highly illiquid assets with vague prospect.

This was a profitable business model in the short term but a very risky model in the long term given the low prospects of illiquid assets such as private equity, which would only cripple financial performance. While Lehman Brothers was pursuing an aggressive growth strategy to increase profitability levels, Northern Rock, on the other hand, was pursuing a different business model from Lehman Brothers but that was also an aggressive business strategy to increase profitability levels. Einsenbeis and Kaufman (2009) assert that the predominant reason of the collapse of Northern Rock was precipitated by its aggressive business strategy that it adopted following its conversion into a fully fledged bank in the year 1997. Einsenbeis and Kaufman (2009) continues to assert that in 1997, Northern Rock re-oriented its business model from “a traditional thrift and mortgage lender that originated and held mortgages to one that relied upon mortgage origination, servicing and repackaging through securitisation.” Just like in Lehman Brothers case, the new business model proved profitable in the short term lifting assets in mid 2005 from $16 billion to a record $32 billion at the end of 2007. In addition, according to the Bank of England (2007) the new business model tripled Northern Rock’s mortgage market share from 6% to a record 19% from the year 1999 to the year 2007. These aggressive business strategies that re-oriented earlier business models of Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock constrained liquidity for the both financial behemoth. An observation supported by Llewellyn (2004) who observes that the exponential growth of Northern Rock of above 20% saw mortgage lending outpace retail deposit, forcing the financial giant to fill the gap using market funding mechanisms.

Due to constrained liquidity, Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock adopted new funding strategies. For instance, Einsenbeis and Kaufman (2009) observe that the new business model of originating and distributing repackaged mortgage loans as securities caused the lender to be highly leveraged; as a result, Northern Rock turned to short term borrowing from the markets to support the securitisation process of mortgages, creating a maturity mismatch. Similarly, Swedberg (2010) asserts that despite immense losses from the countercyclical strategy that sought to re-orient the Lehman Brothers strategy into an aggressive business model, the bank failed to sell the illiquid assets instead focused on short term borrowing from the money market using repos, this saw Lehman Brothers increase its short term liabilities than peer banks. Over-reliance on short term borrowing posed high impact risk to the corporations in case of sudden steep rise in interest rates as it would make borrowing unsustainable drying up liquidity in the corporations, and that is what happened following the start of the subprime crisis, which was marked by the fall of Bear Stearns and a dip in investor confidence.

Financial Reasons for the Collapse of Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock

Following a boom in the housing prices in the United Kingdom and the United States of America, Northern Rock and Lehman Brothers started securitisation of mortgages, that is the origination and distribution of mortgage backed securities. According to Fabozzi and Kothari (2008) securitisation of mortgages is the process in which illiquid assets such as mortgage loans are converted to liquid assets through packaging them into asset backed securities and selling them to investors and other third party agents. The originator of mortgages, in this case Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock, sells issued loans to a special purpose vehicle, which in turns creates tranches and sells them to investors who are willing to take up the risks, cash flow from borrowers of the loans is what is used to pay the investors. Both Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock became key players in distributing securitised mortgages, Barkhausen (2010) observes that by the year 2007, Lehman Brothers had accumulated $85 billion worth of mortgage backed securities in its portfolio, which represented four times its shareholders equity. This over concentration in the mortgage business made the company highly vulnerable to a dip in housing price. The bursting of the housing bubble in 2008 brought out the consequences of over-exposure to the mortgage market to light with disastrous consequences; similar situation was reflected in Northern Rock, which was originating and distributing mortgage backed securities to investors. Securitisation posed an adverse effect of undercapitalisation to Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock due to mismatch of maturity of amount lent out and borrowed funds, as the two institutions borrowed funds on short term basis while lent out on a long term basis creating liquidity crisis on the two financial firms. Following increased credit risk due to default on subprime mortgage loans, investors grew wary of mortgage backed securities, as a result, starving cash Northern Rock and Lehman Brothers who were using proceeds from investors to settle the short term loans, therefore increasing their financial risk.

Key Lesson from the Collapse of Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock

The collapse of Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock, which at the time were dominant players in the financial industry, resulted into catastrophic effects of the global financial system. Due to the adverse effects that the fall of these two dominant players in the financial industry caused the global economy, a lot of research has been done to deduce lessons that players can learn from the their collapse. The other major reasons cited for the collapse of Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock were greed, deregulation of the financial industry, weak corporate governance structures and weak risk management systems. Due to the competitive nature of the financial industry, players were undercutting peers by under pricing risks and engaging in other unethical practices to drive up businesses. Weak corporate governance structures contributed to the collapse of Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock by allowing the management to pursue high impact business strategies. As a result, the financial industry need to be regulated to curb unethical business practices and play a greater oversight role in the operational activities and risk levels of players in the financial industry. Financial institutions should be required to establish effective risk management frameworks and corporate governance structures.

Conclusion

In the past two decades, the world has witnessed mixed happening in the global financial sector, from the dot.com bubble burst in the United States of America in the early 2000’s to the recent banking crisis that has hit the developed countries of Northern America and Europe. Bank failures are mainly caused by liberalisation of the financial markets and deregulation of the financial systems in a country. In the case of the collapse of Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock, it was because of strategic and financial reasons caused by the aggressiveness of the management of these two firms to increase profitability levels and growth. The two institutions reoriented their business strategy in order to spur growth; however, the results had far reaching effects. The lessons learnt include a need for regulations in the financial services industry, enhanced risk management systems and enhanced corporate governance structures in financial institutions to avert another global financial crisis.

Looking for help to write original MBA essays, capstones, dissertations or thesis on accounting, finance or economics? Our MBA capstone writing service is what you need. You can also purchase pre-written high quality essay like the one above on strategic reasons for the collapse of Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock.

References
Bank of England 2007. Financial stability report. London: Bank of England.

Barkhausen, H. 2010. Derivatives in bankruptcy: some lessons from Lehman Brothers. The Journal of Structured Finance, 15(4), 7-10.

Delios, A. 2012. International business: an Asia Pacific perspective. London: FT Press.

Dutta, S., Caplan, D. & Lawson, R. 2010. Lehman’s shell game poor risk management. Strategic Finance, 92(2) 23-29.

Eichengreen, B., Mody, A. Nedeljkovic, M. & Samo, L. 2009. How the subprime crisis went global: evidence from bank credit default swap spreads. NBER Working Paper Series.

Eisenbeis, R. A. & Kaufman, G. G. 2009. The failure of Northern Rock: a multi-dimensional case study. Vienna: SUERF.

Fabozzi, F. J. & Kothari, V. 2008. Introduction to securitisation. New York: John Wiley & Sons.

Katie, J. 2012. Why banks fail: a case study of Northern Rock, Lehman Brothers and Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS)? Munich: GRIN Publishing.

Levine, R. 2010. An autopsy of the US financial system: accident, suicide, or negligent homicide. Journal of Financial Economic Policy, 2(3), 196-213.

Llewellyn, D. T. 2004. Institutional Structure of financial regulation ad supervision: the basic issues. In Carmichael, J, Alexander F.& David, L. Aligning Financial Supervisory Structures with Country Needs. Washington: World Bank Institute,

Shin, H. S. 2009. Reflections on Northern Rock: the bank run that heralded the Global Financial Crisis. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 23(1), 101–119.

Swedberg, R. 2010. The structure of confidence and the Collapse of Lehman Brothers, markets on trial: the Economic Sociology of the U.S. Financial Crisis: A part of the research in the Sociology of Organizations, 30A, 71-114.

Ungureanu, M. & Cocris, V 2008. Northern Rock: the crisis of a UK mortgage lender. Available at: https://anale.feaa.uaic.ro/anale/resurse/018_F01_Ungureanu_Cocris.pdf [Accessed 20 May 2013]

How to Write MBA Capstone Projects

Before crowning an MBA, a capstone project will be required whereby scholars will have the platform to apply in a real business setting what they have learned throughout their academic years. The objective of the capstone is to identify and scrutinize a problem of real strategic importance to an organization from a managerial perspective. Unlike MBA dissertation that is focused on theory and performing research to add to the body of new knowledge in a certain business aspect.

Though dissertation and capstone share some similarities in research and format. It is important to differentiate MBA dissertation and MBA capstone. Since most students come to us requesting for help with writing MBA dissertation when they are supposed to mean MBA project.

A capstone project necessitates MBA learners to use their research abilities and proficiency they’ve gained over the entire MBA studies so far to either decipher real world business related difficulties or come up with a business plan for an entrepreneurial effort. Depending on the program; these high-level projects can be finalized in two semesters of students MBA’ program or extended out the full academic year. The capstone project can be commenced either individually or in a small group of 3 to 4 members.

Many capstones are selected by a student with the approval of a faculty member who will require them to write down a vast pool of recommendations for how certain problematic areas for an organization can be eradicated. In crafting these recommendations, students are given an avenue to exhibit their capability in MBA areas of study in the areas of finance, accounting, marketing, strategic management, and operations. They are defined in approximately 30-50 pages, outlined by a SWOT analysis of the company’s strengths and weaknesses, potential opportunities for growth and threats from competitors.

Process of Writing MBA Capstone Projects

The most challenging yet imperative fragment to any significant capstone project is to come up with an original MBA project topic. The focal attention for an MBA project topic should be its significance to the business realm; it is central to avoid topics that are either too broad or ambiguous as this will entail students requiring extra time when reaches the point when they are researching for data.

Furthermore, the topic must look into problems that are of strategic significance for the organization concerned and give the students the platform to come up with plausible recommendations. Additionally, the MBA project topic should be relevant and address emerging issue. For instance, HR studies are concerned with the evolution of future of work. This will be an interesting topic for any HR student interested with how artificial intelligence will impact on professions and future careers.

Read: Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Accounting profession

The application will prove beneficial to students in different ways. First, it will enable students to formulate tangible connections between the theories and methods studies during the academic year and present everyday strategic and managerial concerns. Secondly, it will assist in applying the different components of the program to carry out an extensive study. Thirdly, it will help students to enhance abilities in arbitration; collective behavior and leadership; and finally it will promote the development both written and oral skills when presenting the final outcomes from data gathered and combined for the capstone.

Students must first submit a proposal that defines the project they wish to carry out, clarify the reasons for pursuing that topic, sketch the objectives they hope to accomplish and how they strategize to meet them and display their initial research into the capstone idea. All this must be permitted a faculty member who will act as an academic mentor for the student(s) throughout the process of writing MBA capstone projects.

As soon as the capstone proposal has been ratified, students conduct an investigation and collect data on the project. If the capstone project involves conscripting a business plan for a new business venture, students will need to analyze data of its business rivals, identify a target market, and prospective sources of funding. During the course, the faculty mentor will appraise the students’ research undertakings and evaluate their process, and provide both accountability and guidance to keep students on the assignment at hand and how to proceed if they are facing any difficulty with any part of their project.

Lastly, the students methodically organize all data they have gathered to formally present the final written portion of the project to their professor. The project must exhibit the highest level of proficiency that one would expect to find in reports submitted to associates of an executive board. A presentation of the capstone follows afterward in front of a capstone committee panel of at least three members, and students may be required to answer questions about their work. The written report must feature the results and conclude with strategic recommendations, supported by an action plan which indicates the practicability of outlined recommendations.

Importance of Writing MBA Capstone Projects

Capstone projects are the final pieces of a student MBA graduate program. They are considered the most integral elements to students due to various reasons. First and foremost, they teach students to exhibit excellent academic and professional standards as they learn to apply the principles and theories of business management they learn in the MBA curriculum to the real world.

After all; it is overall beneficial knowing all there is to know about strategic management and sophisticated quantitative research skills and applying them to gather data from a real world organization so as to draw conclusions about staff productivity or profitability and make improvements on that data. Secondly capstone projects demonstrate students’ ability to collect and analyze either primary or secondary data from relevant and credible sources. Thirdly, once the agreed upon issues have the fully addressed and new recommendations provided, organizations can be able to use them in their ongoing work and decision-making processes.

Writing MBA capstone projects requires experience and expertise. Most students lack time or necessary research writing skills to develop a winning final MBA project. Hiring MBA capstone project writer offers them relieve as the writer infuses business knowledge and much needed critical thinking skills in the paper. Students who come to us for help to write MBA projects ace through their MBA program with distinction.

Sample Political Essay on Battle for the US Presidential Seat

Clinton Vs Trump: A Heated Battle for the US Presidential Seat

Americans always vote freely upon the sacred right of their citizenship. This is their constitutional duty which they undertake with uttermost patriotism. There are some Americans out there who wish that somehow president Obama could be elected for a third time. I am one of these people and I believe that if we could vote today with Obama, vs. Hillary and trump then Obama will win the elections hands down.

Obama in his two terms as the president of United States of America has accomplished and done a life’s worth of work. In the years that he has been president, he has:

Passed the affordable Obama Care Act in 2010 which covered over 32 million Americans who were uninsured giving them a new beginning and hope for the future without any fears on health issues.
He was also able to successfully end the war in Iraq which has been a headache and loss of revenue to the US voters. At the same time he also began the draw down of the war in Afghanistan.
In his term he will be remembered for the elimination of the world renowned terrorist Osama bin laden.
He also reversed bush torture policies which violated the most basic human rights
He made it appoint to increase support for the war veterans to help them fit into the community as they had given their all to their country.

These are just some of his achievements and the list can go on and on and on.With these achievements,it is not strange that Americanization just know what patriotism is, dare to dream of giving Obama a third term in the office. A third term for Obama in the office will ensure that he accomplishes more great things. It will also mean that he gets to finish projects like the cancer research going on.

When we compare their social media life, Obama beats trump on Facebook likes, and also on twitter just to mention a few. This demonstrates on Obama’s popularity and if I dare say percentage of people ready to vote for him without hesitation as he has proven himself to be efficient and effective in his work as he has been in office for two terms.

Obama the sitting US president created one of the best media targeting programs. He reached out to more people than Romney, Clinton, or even trump. Obama successfully reached the local people using the tennis channel, HaTV or ESPN classic. This cheap cable programs reached the smaller states like Alaska and would definitely in moving the masses.

Financially speaking, Mr. Obama managed to raise over $739,000,000 and Mr. Trump only managed to raise $445,000,000 for the American campaign. This just shows how Obama is a more organized campaigner with a lot of support from the American people.

A large group of college graduates don’t like Trump, they prefer Obama as the first option and Clinton comes in second with Trump as the last option if all of them were to stand as candidates in the upcoming elections. President Obama is one of the most recognized people not only in America but in the whole continent and this gives him an added advantage and a guaranteed win If he were allowed to contest for the presidency seat a third time. This is in contrast to Mr.Trump who has majority support in the mid-western states in America while Clinton has her supporters in lowa state which largely supported the Clintons in 2008 and 2012.

Donald Trump will surely be beaten by Obama due to Trumps racist comments and lies, lack of experience, poorly stated economic issues and also issues affecting individual rights where he is accused of sexually harassing females.

A majority of nonwhite residents will favor Barrack to Trump or Clinton. The black community and Mexicans could end up being a major difference per say in the ballot box.

A vote for the incumbent Mr. Obama would be a walk in the park because as the US president, he has all the battle ground states in his back pocket. This includes Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Florida and Nevada. It will only be right for the American people to give president Barack Obama a third time in office as he has proven over and over how he has the best interest of the people of America at heart.

Are you a political science or American history student looking for well researched political analysis essay? Our custom political science essay writers will assist you produce high quality political and geopolitical analysis papers.

How to Code and Enter Data in SPSS

Data analysis involves running raw data in a statistical program to obtain results. Analysis can only be done after you code and enter data in SPSS.

Statistical methods such as descriptive statistics and inferential statistics aid a researcher understand data patterns. Normally statisticians use SPSS, SaS, STATA, S-Plus, R GUI and MS EXCEL to conduct statistical and mathematical analysis. The selection of a package depends on familiarity and simplicity of a program to the user.

SPSS stands for Statistical Package for Social Scientists; the package is mostly used by non-statisticians due to its simplicity. It has a graphical user interface that makes it friendly to users with little programming language. This is unlike other packages like R and SaS that are command oriented and require users to be conversant with statistical equations modeling. Before running analysis using SPSS a user need learn how to code and enter data in SPSS system

In SPSS, the first step involves defining the names and inherent traits of the variable. This is followed by entering values into each defined variable. Each row and column represents source of data and characteristics of the measured data respectively. In case, you wish to add variables after entering data, you just need to define new variables in the variable view. Go to variable view, click an empty row and start defining variables as stated below.

Code and Enter Data in SPSS Like an Expert

Before you run an analysis in SPSS, you will be required to code and enter data in SPSS. The process is so simple that you can do it within 10 minutes even for large data-sets.The process of coding data is described below:

Go to variable view, click an empty row and start defining variables as stated below.

Name: SPSS requires that each variable to be unique, and contain a maximum of 8 characters.
Type: There are eight types of variables to be found in SPSS that include numeric, comma, dot, scientific notation, date, dollar, custom curency and string. To select variable type, click in the cell on the grey box.
Width: This refers to the number of characters to be inputted for the variable.
Decimals: This is the number of decimal places to be displayed by the program
Label: This is a string of text that explains in details what a variable represents. You can enter a maximum of 255 characters containing spaces and punctuation marks.
Values: In case of categorical data, you need to specify which numbers represent which category. For example when coding gender in SPSS you can let 1 represent male and 2 represent female. This can be seen in the data view by clicking the toe tag icon. On clicking the tag it switched between numeric values and their labels.
Missing: This entry in the variable view signals to the program that data is missing. You need to assign figures to be missing values. Like by assigning 9,99 and 999 as discrete missing vales. SPSS would treat these figures as missing and ignore the values.
Measure: This property indicates level of measurement of data source. The three measure properties include scale, ordinal and nominal. Interval and ratio levels of measurement are grouped as scale measures.

Once you are done with coding data, you can enter data values in the data view screen. This will be followed by data analysis depending on what you wish to achieve.

Code and Enter Data in SPSS To Begin Statistical Analysis

There are two types of analysis namely descriptive and inferential analysis. Descriptive analysis seeks to study frequency and features exhibited by the data.

The most common descriptive statistical methods include measure of central tendency and measure of dispersion. These statistical measures are presented in the form of frequency tables, pie charts, histograms and boxplots. These tables and charts summarize data and scale variables.

Inferential analysis goes further to study how variables in a data set relate with each other and forecasting outcome. Survival analysis, modeling, regression, factor analysis, discriminant analysis, time series and categorical tests are some of the inferential statistical methods. Besides researchers, inferential statistical analysis are widely being used by data scientists in studying data patterns and predicting future outcomes.

In case you are any problems, get in expert data analysis help in SPSS from our SPSS experts online.

Sample Essay on Strategic Management Models

Strategic Management Models, SWOT analysis and Porter’s Five Forces

You are a strategic planning manager in a large international oil company. Explain what strategic style you would adopt and why. Cite relevant examples from the oil and gas sector. Refer to models learned on the course such as SWOT analysis, Porter’s Five Forces

Contemporary companies operate in industries characterized by constant evolution of business environment. For example, the internet and computer industry, or even other technology-based industry, is synonymous with rapid changing environment due to invariable technological breakthroughs. Companies that fail to change in tandem with technological breakthroughs slide into oblivion due to efficiency differentials in the industry brought by adoption of new technology. Scholars assert that companies should, therefore, adapt their strategy to their aggressive environment in order to remain competitive. Nevertheless, it is difficult for strategic managers to align strategies with respective business environment due to the unpredictable and volatile nature of some business environments.

For instance, companies in the computer industry operate in highly competitive business environment typified by constant superior innovations, which make it easier for these companies to gain or lose market base easily, making it impossible to predict business outlook. However, there are companies that operate in predictable environments, affording strategic managers those companies opportunity to match strategy with predicted environment; a good example of such industry is the oil and gas industry. Due to disparity in business environments, Reeves, Love and Tilmanns (2012) posit that different companies use different strategies depending on business environment predictability and influence on the changing environment.

BCG Strategic Styles

Reeves, Love and Tilmanns (2012) point out four strategic planning styles that strategic managers use to choose strategy to deploy in their respective business environment. The strategic styles are namely, adaptive, classical, visionary and shaping. Companies operating in business environments which are predictable but whose control is difficult deploy classical strategic planning style. This form of strategic style is highly effective in mature and stable industries such as the oil industries. In this case, a company set an objective to control market share, which it deems favourable, and then engages in planning in an effort to capture and strengthen that market base. Due to globalization, technological innovations, intense competition and economic fears, technology industry is impulsive and unpredictable. Companies operating in the industry are constantly refining tactics and goals and promptly shifting resources to adapt to the reactive business environment. Reeves, Love and Tilmanns (2012) observe that companies operating in fast changing business environment are disadvantaged since predictions are often wrong and long term plans un workable. The only remedy is to engineer flexibility in their strategies by adopting adaptive planning strategy. Shaping is another strategic planning strategy that is highly effective in volatile and predictable industries. However unlike adaptive strategic planning style, companies deploying adaptive strategy try to influence the erratic business environment before their competitors in the industry (Reeves, Love and Tilmanns, 2012). Another distinction between the two, adaptive and shaping strategic styles, is that shapers move beyond the confinements of their company to attract new markets, technologies, standards and business mannerisms. However, just like companies deploying adaptive strategic planning style, companies using shaping strategic planning style, are flexible in their planning cycle, with short term planning successions. Lastly is visionary strategic planning style. In this style, companies predict the future and devise strategies to realise the desired end result (Reeves, Love and Tilmanns, 2012).

Classic Strategic Style

Companies operating in the oil industry operative in relatively stable business environments (Johnston and Johnston, 2006); though, there are changes in the oil industry they are predictable with few erratic cases. As a strategic manager in a oil company I know that business environment in the oil industry is shaped by geopolitical forces, weather conditions, discovery and exploitation of new oil resources, income levels, weather conditions and GDP’s of economies of the world. These business shapers factors are beyond any of the oil industry players. Therefore, I will adapt a classical strategic planning style. In this strategic planning style, I will aim at consolidating my market share by engaging in formalized planning efforts, aligned to the predictable business environment, to capture and retain market position, which is favourable. Grant (2003) conjectures that companies such as Shell, Mobil, BP and Exxon operating in stable industries engage in formalized form of planning due to the relative stable environment that typify the oil and gas industry. The strategic planning process entails incorporating business environment expectations and planning priorities. Murray, Poole and Jones (2006) observe that due to the predictable nature of the oil and gas business environment, Shell pioneered the use of scenario simulation planning to predict the future, facilitating prior strategy development to confront the uncertainties. Consequently, Shell was not overwhelmed by uncertainty events which otherwise would adversely cripple its business operations. For instance, Shell using simulation planning was able to successfully predict two significant business environment events; namely, the fall of the Soviet Union and the rise of Muslim radicalism and drastic changes in oil prices in 1970 (Murray, Poole and Jones, 2006). The Shell management thereby used classical strategic planning style to ensure that they appropriately respond to the predicted changes in the oil industry in order to maintain their market share otherwise would have been adversely affected by those unfavourable changes in the long run.

SWOT Analysis

Due to the predictable nature of the oil and gas business industry environment, it would be easier to use SWOT analysis as a strategic tool in the classical strategic planning process. SWOT analysis is a vital model in classical strategic planning style since it entails assessing the company’s strength and weakness to the opportunities and threats facing the business environment. According to Walsh et al., (2011) SWOT analysis is a management tool that entails evaluation of a firms internal state, which is firm’s strength and weakness, to the external business environment, which include threats and opportunities affecting the firms in the industry. Since the oil and gas industry business environment is shaped by geopolitical, economic, financial and climatic changes which are easily be predictable using simulation, economic and financial models, as a strategic manager I will assess the strengths and weaknesses of the corporation vis a viz the projected business environment to develop strategic plans that pre-empt business pitfalls posed by the predictable scenario. For example, oil companies that predicted and developed plans to curtail Muslim radicalism and Arab spring did not suffer from oil shortage that characterized the Arab Spring since they had put adequate strategic plans to tackle the oil shortage. The financial crisis that hit the world in 2009 was a predictable environment due to the predictable nature of economic and financial policies. Due to the fact that, it is beyond the control of oil and gas companies to dictate the macroeconomic environment of the world, strategic managers of oil companies would only engage in successive planning initiatives targeting favourable markets. Firstly by setting a goal in this case expanding market base and then implementing plans to strengthen the market position. Moreover the use of classical strategic style is effective in the oil and gas industry due to the predictable nature of threats and opportunities in the oil and gas business. Threats affecting business environment of gas and oil industry are majorly: geopolitical, economic and climate. These threats are predictable and strategic managers are able to develop strategies that mitigate their effects on business. Likewise, opportunities in the oil and gas industry can easily be discerned, such as market opportunities and discovery new oil fields. It is therefore evident that classical strategic style is the best strategic planning approach for my oil corporation to use due to the predictable oil and gas business environment that is foreseeable using simulation models and analyzed through SWOT analysis to pre-empt any uncertainty that poses threat to the corporation.

Porter’s five competitive forces

Porter’s 5 competitive forces indicate that the oil and gas business is not subject to intense competition. Porter (1997) highlight that there are five forces that shape competition in an industry; namely, threat of new entrants, bargaining power of suppliers, bargaining power of buyers, threats of substitute product or service and rivalry among competitors. Industries facing intense forces in the five domains of competition do not record attractive returns. Companies in industries experiencing intense competitive forces are in the airline and hotel industries However, companies in industries experiencing mild competitive forces in the five competitive spheres record superior profit. Companies in industries experiencing low or mild competitive forces are in the oil and software industries. Due to the stable and predictable nature of competition in the oil and gas industry, strategic managers are able to develop set goals and plans, and subsequently engage in successive planning to realise the goals; therefore, making classic strategic style the optimal strategic planning style in the oil and gas industry. This is unlike in industries characterized by intense competitive forces, making business environment unpredictable and highly volatile, thus making classic strategic style ineffective. Due to the fact that it is extremely difficult for a new entrant in the oil industry due to the high capital cost, I as a strategic manager will be able to analyze my competitors strategies and develop a strategy to counter them without the worry of another popping competitor. It is evident that due to the predictable nature and mild competitive forces as highlighted by Porter (1997) in the oil and gas business environment makes classical strategic style the best approach to adopt for oil corporations.

CONCLUSION

The oil and gas industry is characterized by stable business operating environment. The only forces that cause turbulence in the oil industry are geopolitical factors, economic factors, financial factors and climatic factors. Moreover, competitive forces in the oil and gas industry are mild, making the industry stable and predictable. In that respect, the business environment is predictable and strategic managers of oil and gas companies can well in advance predict and strategise mechanisms of dealing with uncertainty. Studies indicate that, Shell used simulation planning to predict changes in the oil business environment, and use the simulations developed strategies to overcome the drastic changes in oil prices in 1970. As a strategic manager, I would use classical strategic style due to the predictable nature of the business environment to position my firm to take position of the favourable market.

Johnson, Scholes and Whittington (Exploring strategy, the key module text) have developed the “lenses ” model of strategic analysis, compare and contrast their research with the BCG findings.

According to Graham (2008) strategy entails planning with a long term view of the business, with the view where the management would like the business to be in the long run. It thus entails understanding the organisations strength and weaknesses, its market position and the tactics of the competitors in the industry. There are three components of a strategy; namely, strategic planning or choice, strategic positioning or analysis and strategic implementation (Thompson and Martin, 2010). Strategic planning involves developing plans for strategic change. Strategic positioning entails identifying the position where the organisation stands, where the organisation need to be. Lastly, strategic implementation involves actualizing the plan through taking real and sustained initiatives. Strategy plays a critical role in aiding an organization gain competitive advantage in the competitive business environment (Kaplan and Norton, 2001). Different scholars hold views and models on strategic analysis that may be similar or contrasting.

Lenses Model and Strategic Styles

Johnson, Scholes and Whittington (2008) opine that strategy can be analyzed in three forms of “lenses”; namely, strategy by design, strategy by experience and strategy by ideas. On the other hand, Reeves, Love and Tilmanns (2012) in analyzing strategies assert that organisations should plan strategies using the following four styles; namely, adaptive style, shaping style, classic style and visionary style. Johnson, Scholes and Whittington (2008) explain that strategy by design refers to the view that strategic managers develop strategies based on logical analysis of external and internal constraints and forces affecting an organisation using analytical processes to position an organisation in the competitive business environment. Strategy by experience lens refers to the notion that strategies are influenced and based on past strategies (Johnson, Scholes and Whittington , 2008). In this case strategy is therefore an incremental change rather than a fundamental change influenced by lived experiences and organisational change. Strategy as an idea is based on the notion that strategy does not emanate from the top levels of management but from ideas within the business environment (Johnson, Scholes and Whittington , 2008). Scholars assert that this explains why some companies are more innovative than others. Reeves, Love and Tilmanns (2012) in distinguishing the four styles of strategic planning explain that classical strategic style is utilized by companies in predictable business environment, whereby the company sets a goal and works towards it by successive planning. Adaptive strategic style is adopted by companies in volatile and unpredictable environments, the companies constantly review their tactics to survive in the reactive environment. Shapers are like adapters, they operate in volatile and unpredictable environment, but they shape the environment to their advantage. Lastly, visionary companies predict the future business environment and shape it through innovations.

Similarities Between the Strategic Analysis Models

There are certain similarities between postulations by the two sets of scholars on analyzing strategies. Both strategic models concur that strategic planning is an indispensable tool for gaining competitive advantage in the competitive business environment. That is why there is need to adopt strategies in an effort to realise business goals and objectives, and strategies shape the future. The second agreement between the two schools of thought on strategic analysis is that strategies are borne from ideas that are actualized as tactics, both in predictable and unpredictable business environment. It is for this reason that in predictable environment, strategic managers develop tactics which are long tem in view to aid in business development. Similarly in volatile and unpredictable business environment, strategic managers develop tactics but continuously refine them to adapt to the reactive business environment to bring about desired outcome. Thirdly, strategies are4 shaped by prior lived experiences. In both school of thoughts postulated by Boston Consulting Group and Johnson, Scholes and Whittington (2008), future strategies are shaped by past and present business environment. That’s why Johnson, Scholes and Whittington (2008) point out that strategy can be viewed through the lens of experience, which describe lived experiences of strategic managers and organisation culture. On the same note, Johnson, Scholes and Whittington (2008) posit in visionary and shaping strategic styles that an organisation controls and influences the future business environment by predicting the path to realise it, in this case visionary strategic style. On the same view, shaping strategic style involve shaping the unpredictable business environment to realise the desired goals. Lastly, both researches agree that strategy involve logical and directive planning process to optimize economic performance. In that respect, strategy helps organizations to position themselves in the dynamic business environment.

Contrasts Between the Two Strategic Analysis Models

The two models of strategic analysis have stark contrast. The one postulated by Boston Consulting Group and authored by Reeves, Love and Tilmanns (2012) highlight the styles that organizations operating in predictable and unpredictable environment use to respond to the respective fast changing environments to bring about the desired outcomes. While the strategic model posited by Johnson, Scholes and Whittington (2008) illustrate the different dimensions that strategies can be viewed from; namely, experience, ideas and design. Another difference between the ideas floated by the two groups is that Reeves, Love and Tilmanns (2012) exemplify the environment that the four distinct types of strategic styles can be deployed. For example, the classic strategic management style is synonymous with predictable and stable business environment like in mature industries such as the oil industry while adaptive and shaping strategic styles are used in volatile and unpredictable business environment like in the software and computing industry. This is in sharp contrast to the three lenses postulated by Johnson, Scholes and Whittington (2008) that does not define the type of environment, either predictable or unpredictable, that the three “lenses” of ideas, experience and design view strategic analysis from. The third contrast is that the three “lenses” model highlight that ideas for implementation of strategy comes from within the organization and at all hierarchies of an organization not from the top echelon of management. However Boston Consulting Group insinuates that strategic planning is the mandate of senior management only.

Conclusion

Strategies are indispensable tools both in business and military. It is believed that the use of strategies in business was borrowed from the military. Due to globalization, advancement in technology and intense competition, organizations continually review and implement strategies to match the ever-evolving business environment. It is highly recommended for companies to implement aggressively strategies in order to survive in the fast changing business environment. Different scholars analyse strategies in differing dimensions. For example, Johnson, Scholes and Whittington (2008) analyse strategies using “three” lenses, namely, ideas, experience and design. Boston Consulting Group in analyzing strategy divides strategic style into four domains, namely, classical, adaptive, shaping and visionary. However, the two analysis approaches may be differing, but also pose similarities.

References

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