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Big Mac Index and the theory of PPP

1.) Go to The Economist’s Website, located at http://www.economist.com/content/big-mac-index, and explore the Big Mac Index. Focus on what it tells you about PPP and the relative prices between Thailand and the U.S. in particular.
—–Determine whether or not the Big Mac Index supports the theory of PPP. Analyze the essential manner in which the IFE is reflected in the different prices on The Big Mac Index from country to country. Elaborate on the correlations between inflation and index prices, and the correlations between personal incomes and prices.

  • 2.) Select a Fortune 500 company that is of interest to you. Use the Internet and the following links to research the manner in which translation exposure could affect the company in question.
    • Yahoo! Finance, located at http://finance.yahoo.com/
    • X-Rates, located at http://www.x-rates.com/table/?from=thb
    • CoinMill.com, located at http://coinmill.com/THB_USD.html
    • “Industry Analysis: Recreation” article, located at http://www.valueline.com/Stocks/Industries/Industry_Analysis__Recreation.aspx

——–Focus on the location of most of the company’s foreign subsidiaries and the major currencies that the company must use on a daily basis. Consider the key tools that are available for the selected company to minimize translation exposure when the company repatriates earnings at the end of the fiscal year. Be prepared to discuss.
3.)  What does the PPP theory tell us about the Thai Baht class? Is it overvalued/undervalued? Why?

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What are the arguments in favor of eliminating (or placing a cap on) the tax-exempt status of employer-purchased health insurance?

Instructions:
What are the arguments in favor of eliminating (or placing a cap on) the tax-exempt status of employer-purchased health insurance?
Please add 150 words to the attached team response using the references.
Due today!
 
Team Essay Chapter 6

“The advantage of tax-free, employer purchased health insurance stimulate the demand for comprehensive health insurance coverage” (Feldstein, 2015). Consequently, employees tend to choose premium insurance that provides an easy access to care instead of choosing a lower cost health plans. As healthcare spending continue to increase, the proposal to eliminate or place a cap on employer-purchased health insurance, particularly to higher earning income employees, is being proposed to subsidize funds for lower income earner and to be more conscientious with using unnecessary medical services. Eliminating the subsidy for health insurance and having it taxable only raises the tax bracket for lower income earners, making them pay more taxes. If that so, more people might opt to not buy health insurance, and only seek medical attention for emergency care. According to White, “This would hurt people with less money more than people with more money…would not make health care more affordable.”

Reference

Feldstein, P.J. (2015). Health policy issues: An economic perspective. Chicago: Health Administration Press. Sixth Edition

White, J. (2017). PBS News Hour. Column: The health insurance tax exemption makes care more affordable, not less. Retrieved from https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/column-health-insurance-tax-exemption-makes-care-affordable-not-less

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Project Management Institute (PMI) and Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK)

Questions
1. List each of the 10 knowledge areas of the Project Management Institute (PMI) Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) version 5. Select 3 knowledge areas that you feel are the most important and explain why you feel they are the most important.
2. List three examples of things that you have done in your everyday personal life (excluding work related to a job you have or had) that would be considered a project.
3. What characteristics of hosting the Summer Olympics suggest that it might be treated as a project?
4. What are the requirements to obtain a CAPM (Certified Associate in Project Management) certification? What are the requirements to obtain a PMP (Project Management Professional) certification? You may explore this at the web site “PMI.org” or in your text book chapter 1 appendix.

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The relationship of businesses’ profit to risk assumption

Reply to each essay demonstrating related knowledge. Each reply must include 1 Scripture reference and at least 1 scholarly source all in current APA format. Each reply must be 250 words.
1. The relationship of businesses’ profit to risk assumption
Since the business environment is constantly changing, starting a new business comes with huge risks. “Risk is the chance an entrepreneur takes of losing time and money on a business that may not prove profitable.” (Nickels, McHugh, & McHugh, 2019, p.5). Professor and economist F.B Hawley states that profit is the reward of risk taking in business and that the higher the risk, the greater the potential financial reward for the business owner. New and older businesses both have potential risks that should be assessed frequently, and steps should be taken to reduce them. A loss occurs when a business’s expenses exceeds its revenues. It is important to estimate the probability of financial loss in various situations.  Risk assumption is when an entrepreneur assumes the financial burden of a business loss.
“Profit is money a business earns above and beyond the money that it spends for salaries and other expenses.” (Nickels, McHugh, & McHugh, 2019, p,4). “Profit is the reward for uncertainly-bearing and not of risk-taking in a business”. (“Theories of Profit/Role of Profit in the Operation of a Free Economy,” n.d.) Profit is simply the money you have left over after paying all your expenses. Not all businesses make the same amount of profit each year. In most cases, those who take more risks end up making more profit. It is important to assess all risks carefully, before starting new ventures.
“Risk management is the process of identifying, quantifying, and managing the risks that an organization faces. These risks include strategic failures, operational failures, financial failures, market disruptions, environmental disasters, and regulatory violations.” (“Risk Management Definition from Financial Times Lexicon,” n.d.). Many companies welcome high-risk situations with the intend to make substantial profits. By employing professionals to secure high profits and putting a risk management plan in place, the business can take on new ventures easier.
The relationship of profit and risk assumption, allows the business owner to take a risk in entrepreneurial activity that could potentially produce a greater profit. My conclusion is that without taking risks, a business cannot truly obtain substantial profits.
2. Entrepreneurship has become increasingly popular with the change in time because of the freedoms that come along with working for oneself.  An entrepreneur is a person who risks time and money to start and manage a business.  A business is any action that provides goods and services to another for a price.  The primary goal for a business is to be able to make a profit.  Profit is the amount of money left over after paying all operating expenses and salaries for all employees, including yourself. (Nickels, 2016, pg.4).  The profit from the business is the owner’s to use however they choose.  Some options include hiring more employees, expanding the business, or just making changes to keep up with the competition.  However, to make a profit, you must be willing to take risks.  The bigger the risk you are willing to take, the more potential you have for a greater profit.
The relationship between risk and profit are not always the same in every situation.  Some risks you can foresee the outcome and manipulate as needed until you achieve your desired goal, but some risks are not able to be manipulated.  Some risks an entrepreneur takes must be completely blind.  Often, the most potential for profit spurs from risk that are unable to be manipulated.  There are three types of risks that are taken in business: insurable, eternal, and internal.  Insurable risks have a small relationship with profit and are very low risk.  They are essentially what they sound like; risks that are insured.  These risks do not generate a lot of profit.  External risks are risks that cannot be controlled, such as business to business competition.  An entrepreneur must take on these risks to keep customers happy.  Internal risk can be controlled.  (Lohrey, n.d.).
The Hawley Economic Theory suggests that profit is a reward for risk, and the bigger the risk, the greater the potential financial reward.  The theory implies that without the relationship between profit and risk, an entrepreneur would have no desire to take risks.  It also works the assumption that without taking risks, there can be no great profit for the entrepreneur. (Lister, n.d.).  However, when taking risks in business we should strive to ensure our risks are ethical.  Yes, the goal is to make a profit, but they should not be made at the expense of your beliefs.  Mark 8:36-37 says “For what shall it profit a man, if he gains the whole world, and lose his own soul?  Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (KJV).

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Business & Finance – Marketing: Social Media Strategic Plan Outline

As a social media analyst, you developed a research plan for your client in the MKT 330 Marketing Research and Digital Analytics course. Congratulations! The research plan was a success and now your client is requesting a Social Media Strategic Plan. Before you create the plan, you need to develop an outline to ensure that the client has everything that they require.
Create an outline that includes specific bullets with corresponding information that you can give to your client for sign-off. You will use the outline as a guide when creating your Social Media Strategic Plan. (Note:Refer to Chapter 15 “Social Media Marketing Plan” for additional information.)

  1. Customer profile of your target market (i.e. attributes: demographics, psychographics, geographic locations, behavioral, life style, etc.).
  2. Conduct a competitive analysis using the SWOT method.
  3. Set goals and determine strategies. (Chapter 2 introduces a set of general social media goals, which provides excellent starting point for crafting the organization-specific goals. Also, Chapter 2 introduced the Eight C’s of Strategy Development.)
  4. Incorporate information regarding the observations of social media presence from the MKT 330 Marketing Research and Digital Analytics course and then select platforms. (Note: Use the following five (5) key metrics for auditing a company’s social media presence on individual social media platforms:
    • Sentiment Analysis – Shows the number of positive, neutral, or negative mentions on each social media platform where the company has a sizable presence.
    • Reach – Indicates the number of Twitter followers, Facebook fans, LinkedIn group members, Flickr view count, and so on.
    • Company Posts – Measure how often the company posts on each social media platform.
    • Feedback – Shows the number of comments, likes, or replies to company-generated content.
    • Average Response Time – Assesses response time to user comments on the company’s social media properties.
  5. Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
    • Typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides.
    • Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, your name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
    • Include a reference page with a minimum of three high quality references. Citations and references must follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:

  • Compare and contrast the purpose and features of various types of social media.
  • Identify ways in which businesses and/or celebrities use social media marketing to engage customers.
  • Identify how to measure and assess the effectiveness of social media strategic plan.
  • Use technology and information resources to research issues in social media strategy.
  • Write clearly and concisely about social media strategy using proper writing mechanics.
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C# program

C# program

Write a program that reads a file consisting of students’ test scores in the range 0-200. It should then determine the number of students having scores in each of the following ranges: 0-24, 25-49, 50-74, 75-99, 100-124, 125-149, 150-174 and 175-200. Use labels to display the score ranges and the number of students for each range. The data file, testscores.txt, is located in the I:\kopp\outbox\CS 313 02\Program Assignment folder.
REQUIRED: You must use an array to hold the scores that are read from the file.
Add the following comments to the beginning of the program.
Name: Your Name
Class and Section: CS 313 02
Assignment: Program Assignment 02
Due Date: See above
Date Turned in:
Program Description: You write a short description of what the program will do

Extra Credit 5 points:
Add a check box to the form. When the checkbox is selected, the program should display on the form the class average.
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Compensation Strategy–Select an organization with which you are familiar and describe the type of compensation strategy it uses. 

Compensation Strategy

Select an organization with which you are familiar and describe the type of compensation strategy it uses. 
Guided Response:
Be sure your response is between 200-300 words and includes at least two scholarly references, one of which should be our course text.  Respond to at least two classmates’ posts.
 I need to respond to these two student’s discussion
Reply to Katise Aiken
An organization I am familiar with is Peoplease. This company has been around forever twenty years. We are a small company with about 60 employees. I am a Payroll Specialist and I have been with this company for over 11 years. The company provides services such as payroll, HR, benefits, and tax for mainly trucking companies all over the United States. The strategy that fits this company is the “total rewards strategy, including compensation, benefits, work-life effectiveness, recognition, performance management, and talent development” (Weathington, 2016. Ch. 1.2). When I first started at this company, the perks are what drew me to this company. The starting pay was decent, especially with no experience. We got a fairly good raise each year in addition to a nice size bonus. The benefits are exceptional. All Single medical coverage is paid 100% by the company. The coverage includes dental, medical, vision, and life. They offer tuition reimbursement for courses taken that is related to your job.
Our company, as well as our clients, recognize employees for doing a good job. With being recognized there is also a reward given whether it’s money or a letter recognition. The 401K plan is great, it consists of a match up to 4%. If a company keep the focus on compensation strategy that can and will build morale and with keep the employees motivated to do their job. “Compensation represents by far the most important element in the employment relationship and is of equal interest to the employer, employee and government” (Bhatia, 2010. pg. 2). Keep in mind compensation strategies will help motivate, but will also attract new good and qualified candidates to the company.
Bhatia, K. (2010). Compensation management. [electronic resource]. Mumbai; Himalaya Pub. House, 2010. Retrieved from: http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.proxy-library.ashford.edu (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
Weathington, B. L. & Weathington, J. G. (2016).  Compensation and benefits: Aligning rewards with strategy  [Electronic version]. Retrieved from https://ashford.content.edu (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
Reply to Ana Rojas
Hello professor and classmates.
The organization with which I am familiar with is a Bank but have never worked there. The type of compensation strategy it uses is through salary, bonuses, vacation, sick days, 401k, commissions, and insurances. As it says in our text is an excellent strategy “to keep the new potential hire focused on performance and not distracted by personal matters” (Weathington & Weathington, 2016, Sec. 1.2). This organization has a desirable approach to recruit the right employees. This technique will avoid absences, turnovers and the temptation to take advantage to request more of what is set.
They offer salary depending on the experience and market.  They make an appointment specifically to negotiate with the possible future employee before any decision.
Bonuses are always on the table. Every employee who goes to a general doctor will receive an amount of $300-$700 annually. There are other types of written test about a daily routine that they can go and get a bonus.
Vacation is paid for three weeks. In case that an employee does not use it, the money is transferred to them.
They give around ten days for the sick days.
The 401k works by taking whatever the employee wants from 1% to 6% from each check. The bank doubles the amount of each dollar. This amount could be retired in cases that employee leaves for the total amount and in any case.
Commissions work in a private matter. However, chargeback is applicable. This action means that if the customer terminates the offer the employee needs to pay the points back to the organization. This system applies for the next six months people enrolled. After that no chargeback is applicable.
Insurance plan is great. It offers health in vision, dental, general and specialists. They can cover the whole family. The fee is around $600 monthly for all.
Compensation is one of the Bank’s strengths. However, I have heard that some of the bonuses as the one for medicals are not available anymore starting this year and some others will discontinue because their system is interested in incorporating another technological strategy with fewer employees. Another reason could be because of the recent financial crisis our country and society has been experiencing (Proctor & Murtagh, 2014). Many organizations were obligated to implement this cut. Previous employees from the bank say that the rate of commissions and bonuses were multiple times better before than what is today.
Reference
Proctor, R. & Murtagh, J. (2014). Incentive compensation for bank CEOS and CFOS before and after the financial crisis. Journal of Legal, Ethical and Regulatory Issues, 17(2), p.61. Retrieved from http://bi.galegroup.com.proxy-library.ashford.edu/global/article/GALE%7CA397579854/9b3aaa91dafaf767eb0a184e7eceb4d4?u=ashford
Weathington, B. L. & Weathington, J. G. (2016). Compensation and benefits: Aligning rewards with strategy [Electronic version]. Retrieved from https://ashford.content.edu

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Research your state’s law, or a state in which you are familiar, on protective orders and identify who is covered and who is not

Research your state’s law, or a state in which you are familiar, on protective orders and identify who is covered and who is not.
Draft a  700-word position statement to a state legislator, recommending improvements to the law and articulate solid arguments to support your recommendations based on best practice and victim rights and protection.

  • In general, is the person identified in the order is under correctional supervision? Would that change your recommendations for improving the law?

Include a discussion of duration or scope of coverage.
Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines.
Include at least three scholarly references.
Click the Assignment Files tab to upload your assignment.

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Real Estate Appraisal

finance quiz

Fin 480 | Real Estate Appraisal | Exam 1 v1
INSTRUCTIONS
Before the test:
1. This is a close-book, close-note test, work independently.
2. The CSUSB Academic Honesty Policy will be strictly enforced.
At the start of the test:
1. This test contains 8 pages.
2. Before starting, please check your exam and verify if all the pages are printed properly and are in order.
How to answer:
1. This test contains 40 questions.
2. Choose the BEST answer for each of the multiple choice questions; there is only ONE best answer for each question.
3. Enter your answer for each question on the ANSWER SHEET; note that ONLY the answer sheet will be graded, but please turn in the entire packet.
After the test:
1. At the end of the test, please submit your exam to my through email at yu.liu@csusb.edu.
2. Failing to do so will receive a zero on the exam.
Section1: Multiple choice questions (2.5 points each)
1. An appraisal can be described as a process to produce
A. A statement of value
B. A fixing of value
C. An estimate of value
D. None of the above
2. The value of an object means its
A. Fixed amount
B. Worth, utility or usefulness to someone for some purpose
C. Highest asking price
D. Value for any purpose
3. For appraisal purposes, market value generally may be defined as
A. The most probable selling price
B. The amount of the loan commitment
C. The asking price
D. The highest offer
4. Informal appraisals include
A. Price comparisons made by consumers
B. The familiar “market analysis” made by sales agents
C. Value judgments based on intuition and experience
D. All of the above
5. As contrasted with informal appraisals, formal appraisals
A. Are always in writing
B. Are based primarily on supporting data
C. Depend primarily upon intuition
D. Cannot be easily reviewed
6. Which statement accurately describes a formal appraisal report?
A. It may be either oral or written
B. It may vary in length from a short form or letter to a detailed narrative
C. Its form and contents are governed by professional and legal standards
D. All of the above are true
7. Which of the following statements about the government survey system is false?
A. A township is 36 sections
B. A section is 640 acres
C. A section measures one square mile
D. All sections are the same exact size
8. To be valid, a contract must
A. Include an offer, an acceptance, and consideration
B. Involve competent parties, an act to be performed, legal consideration, a mutual agreement, and the mutuality of obligation
C. Both a. and b.
D. Comply with the Statute of Frauds
9. The bundle of rights includes
A. The right to occupy, exclude others, or to sell
B. The right to borrow against
C. The right to convey by inheritance
D. All of the above
10. When title to property reverts to the state because the owners left no will or heirs, it is because of the government’s right of
A. Police power
B. Eminent domain
C. Taxation
D. Escheat
11. Air pollution regulations are based on the governmental authority called
A. Police power
B. Eminent domain
C. Taxation
D. Escheat
12. The appraisal process involves four steps, the first of which is to
A. Choose an appropriate value approach
B. Define the appraisal problem
C. View the property
D. None of the above
13. Which of the following is not an important consideration with regard to the definition of market value?
A. Motives of buyer and seller
B. Informed parties
C. A good location
D. Terms of the sale
14. Which approach to value is considered to be the most direct and reflective of market actions?
A. The sales comparison approach
B. The cost approach
C. The income approach
D. None of these
15. The economic base of a town depends upon
A. Its local services
B. The type of function it serves
C. Its export production
D. Its land-use pattern
16. The land use patterns of a community will often be determined by
A. The town’s origin
B. The topography
C. The transportation systems in use
D. All of the above
17. Which of the following is not a characteristic of a perfect market?
A. Large numbers of buyers and sellers
B. Products are similar and interchangeable
C. Government plays a large role
D. Items are small and inexpensive
18. Appraisers study real estate markets in order to
A. Identify changing price levels
B. Evaluate market reaction to property differences
C. Evaluate the strength of various economic forces
D. All of the above
19. When supply and demand are in balance, value is theoretically equal to
A. The original asking price
B. The cost of reproduction, including profit
C. The appraised needed for a loan
D. Value in use
20. Which of the four agents of production is said to be entitled to the “surplus” of productivity?
A. Labor
B. Capital
C. Land
D. Coordination or management
21. If there are no comparable sales available, which method can be used to appraise vacant commercial land?
A. The market method
B. The allocation method
C. The land residual method
D. None of the above
22. When a jurisdiction concludes that environmental impact reports are required on any new development in an area, the likely immediate result is that
A. Developed properties suffer
B. Vacant land values increase
C. Vacant land values decrease
D. None of the above
23. The main physical unit(s) of comparison in the analysis of vacant land are
A. Price per square foot, front foot, or acre
B. Terms of sale, time, location, and physical characteristics
C. Price, topography, view
D. Price per room
24. Cost estimates used in appraisal relate to
A. Typical costs
B. Wholesale costs
C. Actual costs to owner
D. Cost of materials plus labor
25. Which of these is the best definition of appraisal:
A. A scientific calculation of property
B. The process of mathematically measuring value
C. Investigation and measurement of financial parameters
D. The act or process of developing an opinion of value
26. The power of government to regulate for the public health, safety, and welfare is known as:
A. the police power
B. the power of eminent domain
C. states’ rights
D. sovereignty
27. An item that is not part of the real estate is considered to be:
A. a fixture
B. an appurtenance
C. an improvement
D. personal property
28. Smith and Jones are neighbors. There is an easement across Jones’ property to provide access to Smith’s parcel. If Jones sells his property to Brown, Smith:
A. must negotiate a new easement agreement with Brown
B. may continue to use the easement without interruption, regardless of the sale
C. may continue to use the easement unless Brown objects
D. must notify Brown of the existence of the easement
29. Which of the following is not one of the four factors of value:
A. utility
B. scarcity
C. desire
D. cost
30. An example of a social force that could affect real estate values is:
A. wage levels
B. population shifts
C. climate
D. unemployment
31. According to the principle of supply and demand, prices will tend to increase when:
A. supply exceeds demand
B. demand exceeds supply
C. supply and demand are in balance
D. competition increases
32. In defining an appraisal problem, it is important to identify:
A. the use of the appraisal
B. the purpose of the appraisal
C. the scope of work
D. All of the above
33. Which of the following types of depreciation is almost always incurable?
A. Physical deterioration
B. Functional obsolescence
C. External obsolescence
D. None of the above
34. Worn-out carpeting in a house would most likely fall into the category of:
A. curable physical deterioration
B. incurable physical deterioration
C. curable functional obsolescence
D. incurable functional obsolescence
35. In the cost approach to value, the value of the land or site is:
A. ignored
B. estimated separately
C. adjusted on the basis of reproduction cost
D. based on unit cost
36. The effective age of an improvement:
A. depends on the actual age of the improvement
B. is the difference between actual age and economic life
C. is the difference between actual age and remaining economic life
D. is the difference between economic life and remaining economic life
37. Depreciation may be measured by the:
A. breakdown method
B. economic age-life method
C. market extraction (sales-data) method
D. any of the above
38. An estimate of replacement cost would include the cost of all of the following except:
A. entrepreneurial profit
B. super-adequacies in the subject property design
C. construction loan interest
D. property taxes during the construction period
39. If construction costs are 10% higher in the local market than the average costs listed in a cost manual, the appraiser should adjust the unit costs used in the cost estimate by:
A. multiplying them by 10%
B. multiplying them by 110%
C. multiplying them by 90%
D. dividing them by 10%
40. A 20-year-old building is estimated to have a total economic life of 50 years. How much is the value loss?
A. 50%
B. 40%
C. 80%
D. 4/7
ANSWER SHEET 1
Last Name: _______________________First Name: _________________________Student ID: _________________________
Multiple choice questions (2.5 points each); (Enter your answer below, A, B, C, D, or E)

M01 M11 M21 M31 M41
M02 M12 M22 M32 M42
M03 M13 M23 M33 M43
M04 M14 M24 M34 M44
M05 M15 M25 M35 M45
M06 M16 M26 M36 M46
M07 M17 M27 M37 M47
M08 M18 M28 M38 M48
M09 M19 M29 M39 M49
M10 M20 M30 M40 M50

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