Public Relations Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Public Relations Assignment - Essay Example Thus, the standing of Regent’s College needs to be made in a grand manner in fron to fthe media as well as the press so that the honor and goodwill of the college is raised in the eyes of the public, and this very address is able to attract a large number of students towards seeking admission in the college. The aim is to thus be able to figure out a way to be present on the maximum number of news channels as well as newspapers and print media in order to put in a short word as per the contribution of Regent’s College towards helping the President come and give his address. This is how the college will be able to provide itself as a significant figure in the entire world of institutionalization and this is what sets it apart from the rest. Keys to Success: The keys to success are: As the target people are the youth, the main aim is to not lose focus on gaining the attention of the same. It is very imperative that the plan takes steps in trying to gain the attention of t he youth through the address. Thinking beyond the box. Diversifying our tactics in order to evaluate some innovative ways for the achievement of our goals Professionalism. A professional outlook of things helps in getting a proper and practical over view of performance Various results need to be achieved because the main aim is to achieve results in the form of widespread public and media attention. Only when a large number of students revert back to the college, will the job be done. STRATEGIES: Strategies are some of the best ways of trying to achieve goals. The main aim of a PR group is to try and formulate strategies that are unique to it because otherwise, every other institution or company will be able to grab the attention of the target group. Thus, a... This paper approves that crises are not at all times essentially awful and terrible. An urgent situation or disagreement may give us the chance to reach outsized groups of people with our College’s point of view. Good quality or appalling, a small number of things are needed in the management of crises. According to the essay fundamentally, such processes can be completed effectively if the project manager and other staff associates keep a cautious check on projected media and uphold extracts from the clippings. This process will be under taken under our public relation plan so that we can keep a hard watch on those who can exploit our advertisement strategies and massive campaign. The position at which the endeavors will be considered complete will be prà ©cised in terms of either a time constituent or the accomplishment of a confirmed intention. That is our attempts will be considered complete when we will generate good will strengthen up the population of Regent’s college as per our goal. This paper talks that putting into practice a good public relations plan will help increase and extend the word about Regent’s College, at comparatively diminutive or no charge. It goes without aphorism that, whatever your current state is, the additional people who know about our college the more chance we have of attracting students. The above mentioned evaluation techniques guarantee the successful and fluid running of our plan and these techniques also ensures that the plan will be productive enough for the exploitation of this mega event to the fullest.

Ice Cream Business Plan Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Ice Cream Business Plan - Assignment Example The company will be located in Yreka Junction Shopping Center in northern California. The company will be the only specialty Ice Cream Shoppe and will take advantage of the lack of competition within 30 miles and will serve many communities in the surrounding area. Located in the shopping center includes two large grocery chains, Wal-Mart and Raley’s as well as other smaller products/service stores. Also located in the shopping center are a few fast food restaurants, Carl’s Jr., McDonalds, and Taco Bell which serve prepared frozen desserts products but don’t offer any type of unique or superior ice cream flavors that my company will offer. Shasta Ice Cream’s primary customers will be drawn from surrounding cities and towns which accumulate close to 15,000 people according to 2010 census and projected to have a 6.5% growth rate each year. I will also take advantage of customers shopping in the Yreka shopping center on an impulse basis during their trips to the supermarkets or finishing meals at the local restaurants. However, the company will have no name recognition throughout the community and I will have to create a strong marketing and advertising plan in order to capture the market. To help staff the store I plan on hiring an accountant to keep track of all the financial, inventory, wages, and manufacturing overheard aspects of the business. I will also find a Lawyer who deals with small companies to ensure all requirements and procedures are being met with different court filings, as well as to write up different documentation used for hiring and contracts for partnerships with companies within the community. I will also hire an assistant manager to help manage daily operations at the store as well as four part time employees to work approximately 20-25 hours a week to provide customer service. Tart frozen yogurts have made a major come back, with many frozen yogurt franchises appearing on market.   The original product has

Communication Strategies for Therapeutic Relationships

Communication Strategies for Therapeutic Relationships This reflective essay aims to refresh critique and develop existing knowledge and understanding of communication techniques and how these transferable skills and approaches can build therapeutic relationships with a patient that lies within the scope of professional boundaries. This essay identifies in a role play video clip the different approaches to building therapeutic relationships and traces the barriers that prevent the nurses from engaging in such a relationship. In addition to the above, it offers an analysis of both vignettes critically reflecting on their therapeutic skills and approaches. It will draw in on my own personal experience from clinical practice and the skills developed with the assistance of Bortons reflective model. It is indispensable that nurses caring for children, adolescents, adults and their families develop and maintain effective communication techniques as it makes it central to the provision of compassionate, trusting and collaborative therapeutic relationships. Reflecting and critiquing can be viewed as an in-depth examination reviewing an experience so each stage can be described, explored, assessed and be accordingly used to inform and change future practice. Evaluating the main communication skills and approaches to building therapeutic relationships identified in the video, it is clear to distinguish between who is a good nurse and who is not. The nurses in the video should serve as client advocates and as part of an interdisciplinary team whose members may have different ideas about priorities of care. The techniques used by the first nurse were poor and her approach created a stressful relationship between nurse and patient. In the beginning, the nurse doesnt offer any form of re cognition which is easy to criticize as acknowledging the patient and indicating awareness of change would have shown that the nurse saw Mrs. Miller as an individual. Giving information such as Hello, My name is can build trust which is key in later on forming a therapeutic relationship and building a better rapport. Mrs. Miller was really uncomfortable as she was left unattended too all night. The nurse exhibited non- accepting gestures such as rolling her eyes and not maintaining eye contact. Non-accepting gestures can create barriers between nurse and patient as it can imply to them that the nurse does not have a genuine interest in their requests and make them feel like the nurse is rejecting not only their communication but also themselves. If she had expressed an accepting gesture towards Mrs. Miller it would have conveyed that the nurse recognised and empathised with her whilst simultaneously following the train of thought. Examples of this include head nodding, eye contact, and non-judgemental facial expressions. A critical component in therapeutic nursing is active listening. The nurse does not fulfill this useful technique as she and the patient seem to continuously talk over each other. When actively listening, a nurse can hear and understand what the patient is saying, which more impo rtantly allows for the proper interpretation and translation of what the patients expressing. Silence can enable this as it allows for the patient to focus on the issues that are of most importance and it encourages the person to put thoughts and feeling into words only if the nurse is listening passively and attentively. A client and nurse relationship can be characterised as a partnership where both work together to improve the patient health status and fulfil purposeful objectives where they agree about the nature of the problem, develop and implement a plan designed to reach the objectives which in this case is a comfort and pain relief. Reflecting on the dos and donts in the video, the nurse shouldnt have procrastinated the patients reasonable request. As a nurse, she didnt offer herself to help or seem interested in what the person thought. A positive outcome in developing their relationship could have occurred if she had offered her full attention, interest, and desire to understand, without demanding anything from Mrs. Miller, leaving the offer unconditional. When Mrs. Miller expressed I didnt sleep all night and I kept buzzing the buzzer and the nurse would not come in, the nurse didnt refrain from showing a negative response as she immediately crossed her arms and said, Well youre not the on ly patient I have today. This is a very defensive and judgemental gesture. Research shows that being defensive prevents the patient from expressing their true concerns and it is a failure in considering the patients feelings whilst also making them feel as if they need to defend a position, all while the nurse is just protecting herself from weakness. A therapeutic connection between the nurse and Mrs. Miller in the first vignette did not form as the development of their relationship for the nurse proved a challenge and it seemed she does not have the skills to cope with difficult reactions from her patients. Each experience linking nurse and patient whether short or extended is an opportunity for healing. Evaluating the second episode for different therapeutic techniques and communication barriers, it was straightforward to highlight the experiences and interactions that enhanced the development of this nurse and Mrs. Millers relationship. In the beginning of the vignette, the nurse acknowledged the patient by giving recognition i.e. Mrs. Miller, you were resting. I didnt want to disturb you. You can see that respect for this nurse is crucial to the care and quality of a patients experience, where each component of the person is recognised and valued. Almost immediately the nurse sits down offering herself and giving her presence, interest, and desire to understand. The nurse actively listens to Mrs. Miller and indicates an accepting response without inserting her own values or judgements. Listening is a difficult skill as it requires you to eliminate any external noise and focus your at tention on all the verbal and non-verbal messages. Mrs. Miller states how she has a biopsy procedure to get done and the nurse effectively plays the role of a functioning resource person by making the information available to her which increased her knowledge of the biopsy procedure and prepared her for what to expect, i.e. They will put you to sleep with anaesthesia. This seemed to enhance the wholeness and wellbeing of Mrs. Miller and facilitate in building trust between nurse and patient. Feeling as if she has someone to confide in, Mrs. Miller described an experience she had with a nurse on the night shift as rude and awful and when she would come in, she would just stick her head in and leave. The nurse passively listens, a skill which involves being present non-verbally, maintaining eye contact whilst head nodding and then she actively listens by reflecting and directing questions back to Mrs. Miller by restating what she had said so you felt like you werent cared for?. This a pproach conveys to Mrs. Miller that the nurse has listened and understood what the clients basic message was whilst also allowing for her to get a clearer idea of what she has said. After Mrs. Miller revealed her ordeal in the hospital during the night, the nurse showed compassion towards her by placing her hand on hers and expressed her sincerest apologies, I am so sorry that happened to you. A critical component of therapeutic nursing and communication is the act of touch. The laying on of hands and touch can demonstrate care and empathy but it is also central to the idea of healing. The nurses use of various therapeutic and communication approaches to help Mrs. Miller express her ideas and feelings in a way that demonstrates respect and acceptance enabled the development of a therapeutic relationship between nurse and patient, which was solely influenced in a positive way by their interactions. It is easy to say that from the video even brief encounters like this one can be therapeutic. Patients can act out when stressed about upcoming procedures or if they are in pain but it requires a mature and patient nurse to transfer their skills and knowledge with the therapeutic use of ones self to respond in healing ways in less than ideal situations. My clinical nursing practice experience in Parklands care home provided me with the opportunity to work with real patients, experience a nursing home environment which I may now pursue once I have earned my degree and it offered me the chance to learn how to work with fellow nurses and other members of the healthcare team, but most importantly it presented me with numerous moments to deliver individualised and holistic care by the use of therapeutic touch. Below there will be subheadings based on Bortons 1970s Reflective framework, where I have critically reviewed on how I developed the use of therapeutic touch in my placement. What? : What I have learned is that there is a required need for other alternatives to pharmacological therapy among older adults with dementia due to their harmful side effects. The therapeutic use of touch offers a non-pharmacological treatment which can decrease behavioural symptoms such as restlessness. What surprised me was how the use of touch can provide a healing effect and make the residents feel my caring nature and what I hoped for at Parklands was for the residents to believe that I took into consideration all of their needs. So what? : So, the important message I have gained an understanding in during my experience is that touch is a nursing intervention and so, what I have learned is that residents were more responsive to a good listener, touch and a reassuring word as it communicated to them that I cared, especially as the therapeutic use of touch affectionately transmits warmth. So, what I need to know more about is that with touch there has to be acceptability and that may vary from person to person as I have to take into consideration their culture and background. Experience in completing more clinical practices will develop my self-awareness. Before I used to believe touch was an invasion of privacy and could be interpreted wrongly as sexual to the resident. So, the ideas of what I had previously thought about touch have changed as it can facilitate comfort and healing. Now what? : Now what I can do with my new perception is connect with my patients by offering myself with a simple application of touch which portrays a genuine interest. Experience will be beneficial as I will be enhancing my self-awareness and knowledge base around the use of therapeutic touch and this will give me confidence when interacting with members of a multidisciplinary team and patients themselves. Reviewing both vignettes showed how each experience we have with our patients can be healing and helpful but also harmful and unfeeling. Mastering the skills required for developing a therapeutic relationship is a lifelong process assisted by reflection which can be viewed as an impersonal scrutiny and valued judgement of your work or anothers using an objective approach which is to highlight you or your colleagues strengths and weaknesses. When engaging a therapeutic relationship and effectively using the different approaches and techniques such as touch, active listening, and recognition you can help your patient achieve harmony, peace of mind, body, and spirit.

Religion in Public Schools :: Prayer in Public Schools

Religion in the Classroom In the past Religion was confined to the state now with religious freedom everything has changed or at least started to change. In order for religion to be in a private school now it is again trying to be in Public schools. People ask "why can't freedom to acknowledge god be enjoyed again by children in every schoolroom across this land?" In the past, a long time ago children always prayed before class started and before lunch. But things have changed, "in 1791 the separation of church and state" started. Although it was made clear about the separation of the two "as late as 1951 some twenty states permitted schools to begin the day by reading aloud a passage of the bible." Bu t that had to stop. People didn't have the same beliefs when it comes to religion, if a family absent even believe in god why should their child be forced to pray? On many different occasions questions similar to this one were brought up and complained about. That is what started it all real big. When complaining, arguing and fighting all started over the silent moment. In 1978 a few lawyers got together and considered a constitutional law. The original law said that public school teachers in gr ades 1-6 "shall announce that a period of silence, not to exceed one minute, shall be observed for meditation." This law did not work for long, because it still allowed oral prayer in public high schools. Later in 1981, the Alabama State Senator D onald G. Holmes successfully passed a bill that included all grades calling it "the moment of silence" this law said that "the teacher (was) to announce that the silent moment may be used for voluntary prayer." Although it would have to be si lent prayer. Even after this new law started the lawyers that were opposed to this were trying to say that students "do not have a right to pray in school" silently or otherwise because of growing impressions that affect their life. The silent mom ent supposedly "(forced) religion on children." I don't agree with that at all, if there has to be a moment of silence then any child can use that moment however he or she wants, it does not necessarily have to be used fro prayer. Usually "the chi ldren who have been brought up with prayer or some type of religion are usually proven to be better" kids.

Impossibility of Certainty in Hamlet

The Impossibility of Certainty in Hamlet â€Å"Doubt is that state of mind where the questioner faces no single answer nor the lack of one, but rather a choice between a pair of alternatives. † – Harry Levin in The Question of Hamlet It is appropriate that William Shakespeare’s Hamlet is regarded as the Bard’s greatest dramatic enigma, for misunderstanding is the unavoidable condition of Hamlet’s quest for certainties. Not only is Hamlet bewildered by puzzling visions and by commands seemingly incapable of fulfillment, but he is also the victim of misinterpretation by those around him.The dying Hamlet urges the honest Horatio to â€Å"report me and my cause aright To the unsatisfied†, because none of the characters except for Horatio have caught more than a glimpse of Hamlet’s true situation (V. ii. 371-372). We as an observing audience, hearing the inner thoughts and secret plots of almost every significant character, should remember that we know vastly more than the play’s characters. In Hamlet, we cannot pretend that we are unaware of what happens next or how it all comes out  essay writer prank. This is Shakespeare’s richest source of dramatic irony.However, the characters are faced with rival options: to revenge or not to revenge, whether a Ghost comes from heaven or from hell. It is this doubt, this hesitancy in the face of two possibilities, that is central to Hamlet at every level. Hamlet is a play of misunderstanding and impediment. Its central theme is the elusiveness of knowledge and certainty. From the very first scene, the play establishes uncertainty through the interrogative dialogue between Barnado, Francisco, Marcellus, and Horatio: Barnardo: Who’s there? Francisco: Nay, answer me. Stand and unfold yourself Barnardo: Say, what, is Horatio there? Horatio: A piece of him. (I. i. 1-24) Having established a mood of fear and uncertainty, the apparition of the Ghost causes Horati o to declare â€Å"It harrows me with fear and wonder† (I. i. 51). This antithetical placement of words heightens the paranormal and eerie setting of the play. The â€Å"portentous† Ghost acts as an omen for what is to come (I. i. 121). The seemingly extravagant monologue where Claudius appeals to his subjects to accept the validity of his marriage to Gertrude hints that the new King is putting on a facade. Read more about Dramatic CriticismClaudius uses many oxymoronic phrases to try and reconcile the death of Old Hamlet and Claudius’ subsequent marriage to Gertrude such as, â€Å"With mirth in funeral and with dirge in marriage† (I. ii. 12). This rhythmically balanced but significantly dissonant sentence serves to highlight that there is something suspect and â€Å"Rotten† in the state of Denmark. Claudius further enforces the idea that nothing can really be trusted. Similarly, the relationship between the actions and internal thought processes of human beings is evident in the scheming Polonius.Polonius is also a man with little integrity capable of great deceit. He tells his son Laertes, â€Å"To thine own self be true† (I. iii. 84). But later Polonius enlists Reynaldo to spy on his son, stating, â€Å"Your bait of falsehood take this Carp of truth† (II. i. 70). This metaphor and the oxymoronic placement of â€Å"falsehood† and â€Å"truthà ¢â‚¬  exemplify the presence of duality in the play. He dismisses Reynaldo saying, â€Å"You have me, Have you not? † (II. i. 75). The uncertainty and lack of trust within the play is reflected in the chiastic syntax of this sentence.Polonius is distrusting of his own servant. The allusions to ancient Greece and Rome throughout Hamlet further support the ideas of duality and deception. Hamlet, in a simile, compares his father to Claudius like â€Å"Hyperion to a Satyr† (I. ii. 144). Hamlet later has the Players recite lines referring to the â€Å"ominous horse† of Troy (II. ii. 479). Polonius makes a reference to Brutus’ betrayal of Julius Caesar (III. ii. 109-110). All three of these references contribute to the duality and deception evident in the play.A Satyr is only half a man, the Trojan horse is heralded as one of the most treacherous and deceitful means of conquest, and Julius Caesar is murdered by people he thought were loyal to him. David Beving ton notes in his commentary on Hamlet that the name Claudius stems from two words. The first is the verb claudo, meaning â€Å"to imprison†. The second is the adjective claudus, meaning â€Å"disabled, wavering, or uncertain† (Bevington). It goes without saying that a character whose name literally means â€Å"uncertain† highlights the theme of doubt that is apparent through the whole play.The arrival of the Players and their presentation of â€Å"The Murder of Gonzago† in Act 3 also demonstrate duplicity within the text. Hamlet modifies the play within a play to have it reflect the murder of his father. This dramatic device conjures up the notion of appearance versus reality. The duality of Claudius, Polonius, and Hamlet demonstrate the lack of certainty and absolute truth within the play. The perpetual search for meaning and questioning of the established order within the play reflects the unattainability of truth and certainty in greater society.Hamlet ’s numerous soliloquies of self-questioning and self-loathing paint an image of a man overcome by excruciating self-observation. Morris Weitz notes that Hamlet’s speeches show signs of existentialism (â€Å"How weary, stale, flat and unprofitable seem to me all the uses of this world†, I. ii. 137-138), relativism (â€Å"For there is nothing good nor but, but thinking makes it so†, I. ii. 268-270), and moral subjectivism (â€Å"Vicious mole of nature†¦in their birth†¦wherin†¦they are not guilty since nature cannot choose his origin†, I. iv. 27-29).Although the Greek Sophists had dabbled in these concepts, and Socrates had once said, â€Å"The only thing I know is that I know nothing†, this questioning of the societal and philosophical norms of the time was revolutionary and unparalleled (Weitz). The King at the time of Hamlet’s publication was James I, who had affirmed the â€Å"Divine Right of Kings† to rule. At a time when the sovereignty of the Monarchy reigned supreme, Hamlet’s questioning of the afterlife, (â€Å"To be, or not to be†¦what dreams may come†, III. i. 64-74), lamentation at the inequality n the world (â€Å"Th’ Oppressor†¦that patient merit of the unworthy takes†, III. i. 79-82), and rejection of the superiority of Monarchs (â€Å"Our monarchs and outstretched heroes the beggars’ shadows†, II. ii. 282-283), is a testament to the elusiveness of certainty and truth in the play. The themes of duality and deceit and the search for meaning and order are central to the essential message of Hamlet that certainty is unattainable. This duality makes up the entire structure of Hamlet, proving that, â€Å"A double blessing [truly] is a double grace† (I. iii. 58). Works Cited Bevington, David M. Introduction.Twentieth Century Interpretations of Hamlet ; a Collection of Critical Essays. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1968. 1-12. Print. Levin, Harry. â€Å"Interrogation, Doubt, Irony: Thesis, Antithesis, Synthesis. † The Question of Hamlet. New York: Oxford UP, 1959. 48+. Print. Weitz, Morris. Introduction. Hamlet and the Philosophy of Literary Criticism. Chicago: University of Chicago, 1964. Vii-Xiii. Print. Bibliography Bevington, David M. Introduction. Twentieth Century Interpretations of Hamlet ; a Collection of Critical Essays. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1968. 1-12. Print. Levin, Harry. Interrogation, Doubt, Irony: Thesis, Antithesis, Synthesis. † The Question of Hamlet. New York: Oxford UP, 1959. 48+. Print. Weitz, Morris. â€Å"Hamlet: Philosophy the Intruder. † Shakespeare, Philosophy, and Literature: Essays. Ed. Morris Weitz and Margaret Collins. New Studies in Aesthetics 10. New York: Lang, 1995. 17-33 Weitz, Morris. Introduction. Hamlet and the Philosophy of Literary Criticism. Chicago: University of Chicago, 1964. Vii-Xiii. Print. West, Rebecca. â€Å"A Court and World Infected by the Disease of Corruption. † Readings on Hamlet. By Don Nardo. San Diego, CA: Greenhaven, 1999. 106-11. Print.

Financial Ratio Analysis: Daimler Group and Bmw Group Essay

Abstract In this report, we calculate and compare the financial performance between Daimler Group and BMW Group in two financial years 2010-2011. The objective is to analyse the financial performance of both groups and identify our company’s position, thus suggesting the potential areas for improvement for our company. I) Introduction In this report, we analyse and compare the financial performance between BMW Group and Daimler Group in 2010 and 2011 using financial ratios analysis. The BMW Group and Daimler Group are two of Germany’s largest industrial companies and are among the most successful car and motorcycle manufacturers in the world. By doing comparisons, we will be able to identify the financial position and the potential areas of improvement for our firm. All the figures were taken from the firms’ annual reports. II) Financial Ratio Analysis Financial ratios for BMW Group and Daimler Group are provided below. 1) Profitability The ROCE ratio measures how well the business has used the capital invested to generate profits while the ROE indicates the business’s ability to generate profits using shareholders’ funds. The GPM indicates how much a company earns taking into consideration the cost of sales. The NPM shows the amount of each sales dollar left over after all expenses have been paid. Both groups have achieved significant increase in revenues in 2011 leading to improvements in all profitability ratios comparing to 2010. Both firms have been more efficient in using its resources to generate returns, where both ROCE and ROE ratios have showed significant increases in 2011. It is also worth noticing that despite having higher GPM for both years, Daimler’s NPM figures were lower than that of BMW, indicating that Daimler has higher operating expenses than BMW. Overall, BMW has performed better than Daimler in terms of profitability. 2) Efficiency Efficiency ratios are typically used to analyse how well a company uses its assets and liabilities internally. The sales revenue to capital employed ratio indicates how well the organization used the capital invested in the business to generate revenue for the company as whole. Both companies have experienced an increase in the revenues over the past two years but both companies haven’t experienced an increase in the asset turnover ratio. It has increased with BMW probably as a result of the reduction in the non-current liabilities. The opposite has occurred with Daimler Group most likely as a result of the massive increase in the non-current liabilities. This ratio can be further explained using the sales revenue to non-current assets and sales revenue to working capital ratio. The sales revenue to non-current assets ratio measures how well the managers invested the non-current assets of the company to generate revenue for the growth of the business. This ratio has most definitely been affected by the investment in new non-current assets by both groups but Daimler has managed to use these assets to generate more revenue than BMW but still has used its new non-current assets efficiently to generate a sales revenue which would in turn lead to a ratio higher than the previous year’s ratio figure. The sales revenue to working capital explains how well the company is using its working capital to generate sales revenue. It is one of the best ways to watch the changes in cash overtime, this is important because the company needs cash to operate. Daimler has experienced a significant decrease in this ratio and BMW, the opposite occurred. This could be as result of fluctuations in the current assets and liabilities of both companies. The inventory turnover period ratio measures the length of time stock is held within the business. Both companies are now holding stock for longer than they did in 2010. It takes Daimler 77 days to sell its products while it takes BMW 65days. Both results are quite high but BMW has an advantage. This means that BMW has fewer inventories in store than Daimler at the end of the year, which means lower holding costs for BMW. The trade receivables period ratio calculates how long it takes the company to collect payments from its customers. A business will naturally be concerned with the amount of funds tied up in trade receivables and try to keep this at a minimum as it can have a significant impact on the cash flow of the business. This has not changed much for both companies over the past two years but has increased slightly for BMW in 2011. Daimler has more funds tied up in trade receivables. The trade payables period indicates how long it takes the company to pay its suppliers. Most companies would prefer this to be as long as possible but this can be taken to far and result in the loss of goodwill of suppliers. Both groups have managed to increase the period it takes them to pay their creditors. Both companies take a longer period to pay their suppliers than it takes for their debtors to pay what they owe. This shows a good cash flow movement for both companies. The operating cycle is expressed as an indicator of management efficiency. It has three components of inventory turnover period, trade receivables period and trade payables period. These come together to form the complete measurement of operating cycle days. This hasn’t changed for Daimler over the past two years and has increased slightly for BMW. It takes BMW a shorter period to generate revenue from its purchase of inventory than it takes Daimler. 3) Liquidity Liquidity ratios attempt to measure a company’s ability to pay off its short-term debt obligations. In general, the greater the coverage of liquid assets to short-term liabilities the better it is, because it gives a clear signal to whether a company can pay its debts that are due in the near future and still be able to fund its ongoing operations. The current ratio measures a company’s ability to pay back its short-term debts in short notice. The acid test ratio is similar to the current ratio except does not include inventory and prepaid expenses as assets but only those that can be turned into cash easily. Therefore, it measures the firm’s ability to pay its current obligations immediately. Comparing the two companies, those figures are quite similar. As for manufacturing companies like Daimler and BMW, current ratio of/more than 1 is desirable. Both companies did manage well to achieve the target figures in both years. Changes in the ratios between two years are not significant, but it is worth pointing out that Mercedes showed a small improvement in liquidity (from 1.07 to 1.22), whereas BMW got a minor decline (from 1.08 to 1.04). Although the acid test ratios falls below 1 in both years for both firms, thus both firms are unable to pay back its short term debts immediately, it does not necessarily mean that it will go bankrupt – as there are many ways to access financing – but it is definitely not a good sign. In general, Daimler’s current and quick ratios showed a slightly better liquidity position, comparing to BMW’s. In fact, liquidity ratios are remarkably affected by the company’s working capital management. That is why we should examine some working capital figures to fully analyze two companies’ liquidity circumstances. The Cash Conversion Cycle (CCC) is similar to the Operating Cycle. While the parts are the same – receivables, inventory and payables – in the CCC, they are analysed from the perspective of how well the company manages its cash, as opposed to their impact on operational capital assets. The CCC measures the number of days a company’s cash is tied up in the production and sales process of its operations and the benefit it gets from payment terms from its creditors. The shorter this cycle, the more liquid the company’s working capital position is. In general, both firms have taken longer to shift their stocks, receive payments and pay out their creditors in 2011 comparing to 2010. This trend could mean the demand for the firms’ products has been decreasing. Moreover, BMW performed better than Daimler with all of its figures being noticeably lower in both years. Therefore, the CCC of BMW is considerably lower than that of Daimler. Apparently, we can see that both companies had reasonable figures and good working capital management. Yet, overall, BMW seemed to have performed better than Daimler, as the processes were faster. 4) Solvency Gearing measures the proportion of a company’s finance which is provided from external sources. In theory, the higher level of gearing, the riskier the business, since interest and repayment of debts must be paid regardless of the situations. However, gearing can be a financially sound part of a business’s capital structure, especially if the business has strong, predictable cash flows. Both companies have had a consistent gearing ratio of about 65% (for BMW) and about 55% (for Damlier Group) over the course of 2 years (2010 and 2011) which states that the companies are highly geared. Debt Equity Ratio is the ratio of the debt that a company has to the its shareholders’ equity. A higher the percentage means that a company is using more leverage and has a weaker equity position. Optimally the debt equity ratio of a company should be 1. For most companies, the ratio is usually between 1.5-2. The debt equity ratio of BMW shows a slight fall this year and a slight increase in the case of Daimler Group. BMW’s gearing ratio and debt to equity ratio indicate that BMW is more leveraged than Daimler. Interest cover ratio is used to determine how easily a company can pay interest on outstanding debt. There has been a good amount of increase in this ratio in BMW as well as in Daimler Group as it can be seen above. It can be said that the profit of BMW was 8.5 times and 6.94 times (for Daimler) greater than the amount of interest that it incurred on its respective outstanding debts. A higher interest cover ratio indicates that the business is easily able to meet its interest obligations. Usually any interest coverage ratio higher than 1.6 is considered safe which leaves us to the conclusion that BMW and Daimler Group both are safe companies in matters of Interest payable on outstanding debt. III) Conclusion The 2011 financial year was an excellent one for the Daimler where sales volume, revenue and earnings figures all significantly improved. Daimler Group should control its operating costs and continue to invest in R&D to maintain and improve its profitability levels. It could also further improve its efficiency by better managing the Operating Cycle. In this paper, we have illustrated relationships between different aspects of the firms’ operations and provided relative measures of the firms’ conditions and performance. By comparing two similar firms in the same industry in two years, we have found that BMW has performed slightly better than our firm (Daimler) despite being more leveraged. However, the financial ratios are pure mathematics and do not take into account other aspects of the business, therefore, users should approach them with caution.