Janoskians

The Janoskians are a group of 5 boys that are taking the world by storm! The Janoskians = Just, Another, Name, Of, Silly, Kids, In, Another, Nation. (Skip). The boys became known to the media and public and branded as ‘The YouTube and Online Sensations' in late March last year when their Meet & Greet and Luna Park, Melbourne, had a turn up of over 6000 fans and had to be closed down. They now have over 550K subscribers to their main YouTube channel – The Janoskians – with almost 56 million views to date on one channel alone!!They have caught the attention of Sony, MTV, are partnered with YouTube and have just signed with the likes of Keek and various other social platforms. The boys were also recently approached by the Moreland City Council Mayor, OscarYildez (Vic) and are proud to say that they have now joined forces with the ‘Bully Free Australia Foundation' (in which they promote awareness against bullying) are anti-bullying Board Members and Ambassadors for all online social networks that they are involved with. This campaign also reaches schools, workplaces and the wider community.Involved in this campaign include the likes of Pink, Melbourne Victory Football Club, EDFL, ACG and many other high profile celebrities and businesses. The Janoskians recently released their first single being ‘Set this world on Fire' with 3 more songs to be released in the next few months! The boys have just completed touring and performing in the ‘Summer Night's Tour' with Reece Mastin and The Justice Crew which was a great success and something the boys will never forget. The Janoskians look forward to now travel overseas to meet the ever growing Janoskian fan base all over the world!The boys have made 8 episodes with MTV including many ‘bonus' and ‘bloopers' clips added – in association with their show: www. mtv. com. au/thejanoskians. The show has now reached the UK and has attracted interest from Canada, Sweden and ma ny other countries and no doubt will go global this year with MTV which is very exciting! On Saturday, March 16, 2013, the boys will be attending the â€Å"Ribbon Cutting Ceremony† by the Honourable Prime Minister Julia Gillard who will be officially launching the Anti Bullying Australia Foundation!

Role of Commercial Banks in Development

Role of commercial banks in development. INTRODUCTION A commercial bank is something with which every one of us is well known. However different bankers and economists have defined it in a different way:   According to Kent: â€Å"An organization whose principal operations are concerned with the accumulation of the temporarily idle money of the general public for the purpose of advancing to others for expenditure. † According to Banking Companies Ordinance 1962: Banking means the accepting for the purpose of lending or investing of deposits of money from the public repayable in demand or otherwise and withdraw-able by cheque, draft order or otherwise. † Various economists have different views about the role of commercial banks in economic development. Schumpeter says,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"It is the banking system which serves as a key agent along with the entrepreneur in the process of economic development†. According to  Prof. Cameron  in his â€Å"Banking and Economi c Development†, â€Å"a banking system may make a positive contribution to economic growth and development. Evolution of Commercial Banks The foundation for building a broad base of agricultural credit structure was laid by the Report of the All-India Rural Credit Survey (AIRCS) of 1954. The provision of cultivator credit in 1951-52 was less than 1% for commercial banks. In the report it was observed that agricultural credit fell short of the right quantity, was not of the right type, did not fit the right purpose and often failed to go to the right people.With a view to give an impetus to commercial banks, particularly, in the sphere of investment credit, the nationalization of the Imperial Bank of India and its re-designation as the State Bank of India (SBI) was recommended. Growth in Outreach 1951-91 From the position prevalent in 1951-52, commercial banks came a long way with a substantial spread of 32,224 branches in rural and semi-urban areas comprising 68% of their tot al outlets as on 31 March 1991. The outstanding deposits of such branches at Rs. 7,855 crores as on the same date constituted around 35% of their total deposits, while loans outstanding at Rs. 43,797 crore comprised 36% of outstanding credit. The agricultural advances of the commercial banking system aggregated Rs. 16,687 crore and constituted 14% of total advances in March 1991. The rural and semi-urban branches of commercial banks covered 17. 6 crore deposit accounts while the number of loan accounts serviced aggregated 3. 7 crore. Growth during 1991-92 to 2003-04 The period since 1991-92 has seen a fairly rapid expansion of credit to agriculture.Available data indicate that the flow of credit to agriculture by commercial banks and RRBs taken together increased to Rs. 60,022 crore in 2003-04. This implies a compounded annual growth rate of 22. 2%. In fact, as compared with commercial banks (including RRBs), the flow of credit from the cooperative sector was much slower through thi s period. The compounded annual growth rate of credit for agriculture from cooperative institutions was only 13. 7%. Further, the proportion of agriculture credit to total credit came down because of the rapid growth in non agriculture credit.The Government took some major initiatives during the period to boost agriculture production and productivity through enhanced credit flow and by way of building agricultural infrastructure, particularly irrigation and connectivity in rural areas. Special Agricultural Credit Plan (SACP) was introduced by RBI for Public Sector Commercial Banks in 1994-95. Credit growth for agriculture and allied sectors under this caption reflected a CAGR of 36. 45% during 2001-02 to 2005-06. SACP has since been extended to Private Sector Commercial Banks from 2005-06.The SHG – Bank Linkage Programme was started as a pilot project by NABARD in 1992. It led to the evolution of a set of RBI approved guidelines to banks to enable SHGs to transact with banks. Initially there was slow progress in the programme up to 1999 as only 32,995 groups were credit linked during the period 1992 to 1999. Since then the programme has been growing rapidly and the cumulative number of SHGs financed increased from 4. 61 lakhs on 31 March 2002 to 10. 73 lakhs on 31 March 2004 and further to 29. 25 lakh groups as on 31 March 2007.Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) was set-up in NABARD by GoI during 1995-96 with an initial corpus of Rs. 2000 crore, to accelerate the 47 completion of on-going projects of rural infrastructure. Banks which did not fulfill the priority sector credit requirement and agriculture credit mandate were required to contribute to this Fund. The fund has been strengthened every year with additional allocations in the Union Budget. A large number of irrigation and rural connectivity projects could get completed under RIDF. RBI scaled down its contribution to the Rural Credit funds with NABARD to a token amount of Rs. crore per annum since 1993-94. However to enable NABARD to have reasonably strong leverage for accessing market funds, the share capital of NABARD was strengthened and increased to Rs. 2000 crore (paid up) from Rs. 100 crore at the time of its formation in 1982. Contributions to enhanced share capital have come from GoI and RBI. By prudent funds management, the institution has also built a strong base of reserves and has been using it in its business operations judiciously to keep lending rates to rural financial institutions at significantly lower than market costs. Developments – Post 2003-04Since 2003-04, there has been a substantial increase in the flow of credit to agriculture through commercial banks. Disbursements have increased from Rs. 52,441 crore in 2003-04 to Rs. 1,16,447 crore in 2005-06, reaching an annual growth of 43% each year. As envisaged in the GoI's strategy for â€Å"doubling of credit†, 95 lakh new farmers have been brought under the institutional fold an d 1,383 agri-clinics opened. Commercial banks have also played a major role in the promotion of the SHG – bank linkage movement with more than 11. 88 lakh groups being linked to banks for provision of credit.Reforms in the commercial banking system include removal of procedural and transactional bottlenecks including elimination of Service Area Approach, reducing margins, redefining overdues to coincide with crop cycles, new debt restructuring policies, one time settlement and relief measures for farmers indebted to non-institutional sources. Banks play a vital role in the economic development of a country. They accumulate the idle savings of the people and make them available for investment. They also create new demand deposits in the process of granting loans and purchasing investment ecurities. They facilitate trade both inside and outside the country by accepting and discounting of bills of exchange. Banks also increase the mobility of capital. They provide a variety of f acilities for remitting a large amount of money from one place to another by the transfer of a mere slip of paper. Commercial banks play an important and active role in the economic development of a country, if the banking system in a country is effective, efficient and disciplined; it brings about a rapid growth in the various sectors of the economy. The Functions of Commercial BanksIn the modern world, banks perform such a variety of functions that it is not possible to make an all-inclusive list of their functions and services. However, some basic functions performed by the banks are discussed below. 1. Accepting  Deposits The first important function of a bank is to accept deposits from those who can save but cannot profitably utilize this saving themselves. People consider it more rational to deposit their savings in a bank because by doing so they, on the one hand, earn interest, and on the other, avoid the danger of theft.To attract savings from all sorts of individuals, th e banks maintain different types of accounts: (i) Fixed Deposit Account: Money in these accounts is deposited for fixed period of time (say one, two, or five years) and cannot be withdrawn before the expiry of that period. The rate of interest on this account is higher than that on other types of deposits. The longer the period, the higher will be the rate of interest. Fixed deposits arc also called time deposits or time liabilities. (ii) Current Deposit Account: These accounts are generally maintained by the traders and businessmen who have to make a number of payments every day.Money from these accounts can be withdrawn in as many times and in as much amount as desired by the depositors. Normally, no interest is paid on these accounts; rather, the depositors have to pay certain incidental charges to the bank for the services rendered by it. Current deposits are also called demand deposits or demand liabilities. (iii) Saving Deposit Account: The aim of these accounts is to encourag e and mobilise small savings of the public. Certain restrictions are imposed on the depositors regarding the number of withdrawals and the amount to be withdrawn in a given period.Cheque facility is provided to the depositors. Rate of interest paid on these deposits is low as compared to that on fixed deposits. (iv) Recurring Deposit Account: The purpose of these accounts is to encourage regular savings by the public, particularly by the fixed income group. Generally money in these accounts is deposited in monthly installments for a fixed period and is repaid to the depositors along with interest on maturity. The rate of interest on these deposits is nearly the same 3s on fixed deposits. (v) Home Safe Account: Home safe account is another scheme aiming at promoting saving habits among the people.Under this scheme, a safe is supplied to the depositor to keep it at home and to put his small savings in it. Periodically, the safe is taken to the bank where the amount of safe is credited to his account. 2. Advancing  of loans The second important function of a bank is advancing of loans to the public. After keeping certain cash reserves, the banks lend their deposits to the needy borrowers. Before advancing loans, the banks satisfy themselves about the credits worthness of the borrowers. Various types of loans granted by the banks are discussed below: (i) Money at Call:Such loans are very short period loans and can be called back by the bank at a very short notice of say one day to fourteen days. These loans are generally made to other banks or financial institutions. (ii)  Cash Credit: It is a type of loan, which is given to the borrower against his current assets, such as shares, stocks, bonds, etc. Such loans are not based on personal security. The bank opens the account in the name of the borrowers and allows him to withdraw borrowed money from time to time up to a certain limit as determined by the value of his current assets.Interest is charged only on th e amount actually withdrawn from the account. (iii) Overdraft: Sometimes, the bank provides overdraft facilities to its customers though which they are allowed to withdraw more than their deposits. Interest is charged from the customers on the overdrawn amount. (iv) Discounting of Bills of Exchange: This is another popular type of lending by the modern banks. Through this method, a holder of a bill of exchange can get it discounted by the bank. In a bill of exchange, the debtor accepts the bill drawn upon him by the creditor  (i. e,  holder of the bill) and agrees to pay the amount mentioned on maturity.After making some marginal deductions (in the form of commission), the bank pays the value of the bill to the holder. When the bill of exchange matures, the bank gets its payment from the party, which had accepted the bill. Thus, such a loan is self-liquidating. (v)  Term Loans: The banks have also started advancing medium-term and long-term loans. The maturity period for such loans is more than one year. The amount sanctioned is either paid or credited to the account of the borrower. The interest is charged on the entire amount of the loan and the loan is repaid either on maturity or in installments. . Credit Creation A unique function of the bank is to create credit. In fact, credit creation is the natural outcome of the process of advancing loan as adopted by the banks. When a bank advances a loan to its customer, it does not lend cash but opens an account in the borrower's name and credits the amount of loan to this account. Thus, whenever a bank grants a loan, it creates an equal amount of bank deposit. Creation of such deposits is called credit creation which results in a net increase in the money stock of the economy.Banks have the ability to create credit many times more than their deposits and this ability of multiple credit creation depends upon the cash-reserve ratio of the banks. 4. Promoting Cheque System: Banks also render a very useful medi um of exchange in the form of cheques. Through a cheque, the depositor directs the bankers to make payment to the payee. Cheque is the most developed credit instrument in the money market. In the modern business transactions, cheques have become much more convenient method of settling debts than the use of cash. 5. Agency Functions:Banks also perform certain agency functions for and on behalf of their customers: (i) Remittance of Funds: Banks help their customers in transferring funds from one place to another through cheques, drafts, etc. (ii) Collection and Payment of Credit Instruments: Banks collect and pay various credit instruments like cheques, bills of exchange, promissory notes, etc. (iii) Execution of Standing Orders: Banks execute the standing instructions of their customers for making various periodic payments. They pay subscriptions, rents, insurance premium, etc. on behalf of their customers. (iv) Purchasing and Sale of Securities:Banks undertake purchase and sale of v arious securities like shares, stocks, bonds, debentures etc. on behalf of their customers. Banks neither give any advice to their customers regarding these investments nor levy any charge on them for their service, but simply perform the function of a broker. (v) Collection of Dividends on Shares: Banks collect dividends, interest on shares and debentures of their customers. (vi) Income Tax Consultancy: Banks may also employ income-tax experts lo prepare income-tax returns for their customers and to help them to get refund of income-tax. (vii) Acting as Trustee and Executor:Banks preserve the wills of their customers and execute them after their death. (viii) Acting as Representative and Correspondent: Sometimes the banks act as representatives and correspondents of their customers. They get passports, travelers tickets, book vehicles, plots for their customers and receive letters on their behalf. 6. General Utility Function: In addition to agency services, the modern banks provide many general utility services as given below: (i) Locker Facility: Banks provide locker facility to their customers. The customers can keep their valuables and important documents in these lockers for safe custody. ii) Traveller's Cheques: Banks issue traveller's cheques to help their customers lo travel without the fear of theft or loss of money. With this facility, the customers need not take the risk of carrying cash with them during their travels. (iii) Letter of Credit: Letters of credit are issued by the banks to their customers certifying their creditworthiness. Letters of credit are very useful in foreign trade. (iv) Collection of Statistics: Banks collect statistics giving important information relating to industry, trade and commerce, money and banking.They also publish journals and bulletins containing research articles on economic and financial matters. (v) Underwriting Securities: Banks underwrite the securities issued by the government, public or private bodies. Becau se of its full faith in banks, the public will not hesitate in buying securities carrying the signatures of a bank. (vi) Gift Cheques: Some banks issue cheques of various denominations (say of Rs. 11, 21, 31, 51. 101, etc. ) to be used on auspicious occasions. (vii) Acting as Referee: Banks may be referred for seeking information regarding the financial position, business reputation and respectability of their customers. viii) Foreign Exchange Business: Banks also deal in the business of foreign currencies. Again, they may finance foreign trade by discounting foreign bills of exchange. Role of Commercial Banks In Economic Development Of A Country Commercial banks  play an important and active role in the economic development of a country. If the banking system in a country is effective’, efficient and disciplined, it brings about a rapid growth in the various sectors of the economy. The economic significance of commercial banks is given in brief. (1) Banks promote capital f ormation.The commercial banks play an important role in rising of the financial resources. They encourage savings by giving various types of incentives to the savers. They expand branches of the banks in rural and urban areas and mobilize savings even at far of places. These savings are then made available to the businesses which make use of them for productive purposes in the country. The banks are, therefore, not only store houses of the country’s wealth, but also provide stream of resources necessary for economic development. (2) Investment in new enterprises.Businessmen normally hesitate to invest their money in risky enterprises. The commercial banks generally provide short and medium term loans to entrepreneurs to invest in new enterprises and adopt new methods of production. The provision of timely credit increases the productive capacity of the economy. (3) Promotion of trade and industry. With the growth of commercial banking in the 19th and 20th centuries, there is vast expansion in trade and industry. The use of bank draft, cheque, bill of exchange credit cards etc has revolutionized both national and international trade. (4) Development of agriculture.The commercial banks, particularly in developing countries, are now providing credit for the development of agriculture and small scale industries in rural areas. The provision of credit to agriculture sector has greatly helped in raising agricultural productivity and income of the farmers. This has led to increased demand for industrial goods and expansion of industry. (5) Balanced development of different regions. The commercial banks play an important role in achieving balanced in different regions of the country. They help in transferring surplus capital from developed regions to the less developing regions.The traders, industrialists etc of less developed regions are able to get adequate capital for meeting their business needs. This, in turn, increases investment, trade and production in the economy. (6) Influencing economy activity. The banks can also influence the economic activity of the country through its influence on (a) availability of credit and (b) the rate of interest. If the commercial banks are able to increase the amount of money in circulation through credit creation or by lowering the rate of interest, it directly affects economic development. A low rate of interest can encourage investment.The credit creation activity can raise aggregate demand which leads to more production in the economy. Which finally increases the growth of the nation. (7) Implementation of monetary policy. The central bank of the country controls and regulates volume of credit through the active cooperation of the banking system in the country. If helps in bringing price stability and promotes economic growth within shortest possible period to time. (8) Monetization of the economy. The commercial banks by opening branches in the rural and backward areas are reducing the exchange of goods through barter.The use of money has now greatly increased the volume of production of goods. The non-monetized sector (barter economy) is now being converted into monetized sector with the help  of commercial banks. (9) Export promotion cells. In order to increase the exports of the country, the commercial banks have established export promotion cells. They provide information about general trade and economic conditions both inside and outside the country to its customers. The banks are, therefore, making positive contribution in the process of economic development.Role of banks in 21st century: The commercial banks are now not confined to local banking. They are fast changing into global banking i. e. , understanding the global customer, using latest information technology, competing in the open market with high technology system, changing from domestic banking to investment banking etc. The commercial banks are now considered the nerve centre of all economic developmen t in the country. The use of online banking is now on the increase. It has brought revolution in banking industry. CONCLUSIONCommercial banks are considered not merely as dealers in money but also the leaders in economic development. They are not only the store houses of the country’s wealth but also the reservoirs of resources necessary for economic development. They play an important role in the economic development of a country. A well-developed banking system is essential for the economic development of a country. The â€Å"Industrial Revolution† in Europe in the 19th century would not have been possible without a sound system of commercial banking. In case of developing countries like India, the commercial banks are considered to be the backbone of the economy.The Banking Sector has for centuries now formed one of the pillars of economic prosperity. Indeed history provides us with some starting information regarding how banks provided finance for imperialist ventu res in newly acquired colonies. Over time banks have formed an important part in providing an avenue for both savings and investments. Land, Labor, capital and entrepreneurs are the basic economic resources available to business. However, to make the use of these resources, a business requires finance to purchase of the land, hire labor, pay for capital goods and pay for individuals with specialized skills.The commercial banks provide capital, technical assistance and other facilities to businessmen according to their need, which leads to development in trade. Commercial banks finance the most important sector of the developing economics i. e. agriculture, short, medium and long-term loans are provided for the purchase of seeds and fertilizer, installation of tube wells, construction of warehouses, purchase of tractor and thresher etc. Commercial banks help in increasing the rate of capital formation in a country. Capital formation means increase in number of production units, techn ology, plant and machinery.They finance the projects responsible for increasing the rate of capital formation. Commercial banks help the traders of two different countries to undertake business. Letter of credit is issued by the importer’s bank to the exporters to ensure the payment. The banks also arrange foreign exchange. Commercial banks provide the facility of transferring funds from one place to another which leads to the growth of trade. The commercial banks financed the transport sector. It has reduced unemployment on one hand and increased the transport facility on the other hand. Remote areas are linked to main markets through developed transport system.These are the few ways in which the commercial banks had helped in developing the economy of a country. BIBLIOGRAPHY * Samuelson Norhaus, economics, 18th edn, Tata McGraw Hill Publishing Co. Ltd. , 2008 * Xam idea, economics, F K Publication, 2009 * Chitta Ranjan Basu, Commercial Banking in the Planned Economy of Indi a, Mittal Publications, 1991 * N. Gregory Mankiw, Principles of Economics, cengage learning, 2012 * www. preservearticles. com ——————————————– [ 2 ]. N. Gregory Mankiw, Principles of Economics, cengage learning, 2012 [ 3 ]. www. bankingsector. co. in [ 4 ].N. Gregory Mankiw, Principles of Economics, cengage learning, 2012 [ 5 ]. Xam idea, economics. [ 6 ]. N. Gregory Mankiw, Principles of Economics, cengage learning, 2012 [ 7 ]. www. preservearticles. com [ 8 ]. www. ehow. com [ 9 ]. Samuelson Norhaus, economics, 18th edn, Tata McGraw Hill Publishing Co. Ltd. , 2008 [ 10 ]. Chitta Ranjan Basu, Commercial Banking in the Planned Economy of India [ 11 ]. Samuelson Norhaus, economics, 18th edn, Tata McGraw Hill Publishing Co. Ltd. , 2008 [ 12 ]. www. ehow. com [ 13 ]. N. Gregory Mankiw, Principles of Economics, cengage learning, 2012 [ 14 ]. www. preservearticles. com

British Petroleum

Takeover refers to the purchase of one company by the other and technically deals with acquisition of a listed company by one or more companies which are at better financial and economic position than the company being acquired. BP is on verge of a takeover and the following paper presents analysis of the company. The company is British owned and it has branches in various countries around the globe.The institution is found in energy industry and its one of the biggest and most valued energy supply and distribution institution in the world. Theoretically the history of the company is very complicated as it’s very rich, varied and unique status. The following paper gives complete analysis of problems facing the company especially the one involved before and after the drastic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and consists of references to various journals, business literature, and scholarly literature materials.This paper describes the activities and discusses the conventional rea sons for a takeover, their advantages and disadvantages, and strategic considerations that can be made to prevent a possible takeover. Introduction British petroleum (BP) company is an international energy production and supply company with its head quarters London, United Kingdom. By margin BP is the 3rd largest energy company and the 4th biggest company in the world (Datamonitor , 2009, p, 45).The company has operated in the energy sector for many years and it has gained reputation of being trustworthy thus it has instilled consumer loyalty across the spectrum. This company has experienced rapid changes and advancements in science and technology and presents numerous challenges to the company in relation to personal safety and quality management and also it entails issues like production costs, intellectual ownership of properties and products, competition and monopolies.The company is public held and its shares are traded in major stock exchanges globally including the London sto ck exchange, New York Stock Exchange and other stock exchanges in major cities all over the world with the trading symbol BP (Coffee, et al, 2000, p 98). The organizational original mission was to provide consumers with the right assortment of products, at the right quantities and price, and to provide excellent customer service through trained representatives.The organization current mission is guided by key core values: excellent customer service, care for people, entrepreneurial spirit, respect for all, building strong relationships, doing the right thing, giving back to communities, and creating shareholder value (Weston,2000 ,p ,87). BP success is based on mutually beneficial partnerships with diverse and competitive suppliers, allowing the company to deliver a wide assortment of superior, yet low-cost products and services, combined with superb customer service, and focused towards increasing shareholder value.The company employs over 210,000 employees and tends to serve more than a 300 million customers worldwide (Van & Schroeder, 1984, p 29). With the current problems facing British Petroleum in the Gulf of Mexico following the deepwater rig explosion which was caused by what has been described as the worst US ecological disaster ever, the Company's share price has fallen steeply and according to some commentators this could trigger a takeover of the business by one of its big competitors such as EXXON MOBIL, SHELL or even PETROCHINA (FINANCIAL TIMES, 2010, p 34).The catastrophe has plunged the company’s stock price as well as its reputation, and public image following the catastrophe have led to speculation regarding the company takeover due to the fact that the company is experiencing financial problems, huge losses as a result of oil spill and poor handling and management of the oil spill (Armstrong, 2003, p, 23). The above mentioned issues have been viewed by many to have been caused by poor leadership and decision making techniques in regar d to the way the management handled the oil spill.With the current troubles facing British Petroleum (BP) in the Gulf of Mexico, there is possibility of acquisition or takeover and hence a research paper which tries to come up with the relevant information in trying to establish some of the major factors that have been influencing the anticipated takeover (Ansell & Park, 2003, p 47), Identification of Industry and possible takeover Competitors The company is found in the energy industry and mainly concentrates in oil exploration, supply, and distribution.The industry deals with all assortments of energy products including oil, wind, solar, hydro power and other related energy products and services. This industry is one of the most contended ones with many rivals who produce similar products and services . The top competitors of BP include EXXON MOBIL . SHELL and PETROCHINA; with SHELL being the strongest rival of BP (Maxwell , 2002, p, 29). The company has a global presence and has assets in most areas of Africa especially central and western Africa, China and South American states like Venezuela and Uruguay, but the United States and Russia are its largest market.As mentioned earlier, BP is the third largest energy company in the world and the fourth largest company in the world (Kwon, 2008, p, 87). The possible competitor for the takeover has been indentified to be Exxon Mobil for the reason that the company is American owned and its operations and performance over the years have been above par compared to other rivals. Companies like Shell and Petro china though internationally recognized, their operations are not augmented like those of Exxon Mobil (Johnson, 2010, p 19). Description of the Organizational ProblemsDifferent organizations experience different problems depending on the nature of the organization, the economic situations, the political interruptions, and the human interference. Once these problems occur within a corporation, it tends to affects the organization core responsibility to extent of being unable to provide adequate and quality services to its clients and individuals relying on it. The occurrence of these problems can be a very damaging issue if they are hard to evaluate and solve (Kesler, 2008, p 49).With the British Petroleum (BP) company, there a number of issues and problems that has been constantly hounding it. Most of the organizations problems and causative agent for the possible takeover have possibly resulted from the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and lack of teamwork and capacity building in relation to the employees during the fixing of the oil cap to reduce massive leakage. Due to this, there have been reduced prices of the company’s stocks all over the world due to market fears of possible losses and public loss of confidence in the company.The increased failed management in the corporation resulting from the management poor skills in handling crisis has sometimes been leading its operation s to the wrong direction. The poor handling of the oil spill by the company executives is one good example of the management laxity and the probable cause of the proposed takeover . It must be agreed that BP has been faced with lack of skilled and effective managers offering effective managerial services thus leading it into poor leadership and decision making processes (Lochhead, 2009, p 67).As we have noted, most of the problems faced in this organization have been caused by the oil spill and ongoing economic recession, and others are related to inability of workers to work together. Since there was poor handling of the oil spill, the company has been in bad relationship with the neighboring community and it has not been able to fulfill its social responsibility function due to constant bickering and interference from the American government (Snell & Dean, 1992, p 50).In conclusion, the major issues contributing to the proposed takeover of BP is the matter of financial problems re lating from the management of the oil spill, whereby the company has spent billions of shillings in controlling the spill and eventually the company has been forced to sell some of its assets in Russia to cover the costs, and this has not been going well with majority of shareholders due to fact Russia is one of its biggest market. Lack of trust from consumers and American government is another factor that has led the company to opt selling its assets to its competitors (Maxwell, 2002, p 98).BP Proposed Takeover Definitively, takeover refers to purchase of one company by the other and technically deals with acquisition of listed company by one or more companies which are at better financial and economic position than the company being acquired. Takeover occurs in situations where a company wants to save itself from financial problems and also happens in situations where the company wants to secure limited market, channels of distribution, consumers and supplies.In any kind of organi zation, takeover or acquisition are quite significant since they play a major role towards the overall achievement of the given business or organization. This has to be done in a delicate manner that ensures all areas and aspects of the organization have been greatly considered. When the issue of takeover is being discussed about in a given business or any other kind of organization, it is very important to think of the manner in which the operation will be coordinated and thus employ the necessary personnel and practices which shall promote the performance of the organization .It is important to note that, without managing the human aspect and all other resources being utilized in the business, it may not be possible to achieve the goals and missions of the organization (Stern & Chew, 2003, p 90). One of the major reasons for British petroleum proposed takeover is as a result of the financial and social problems resulting from the oil spill in the gulf Mexico. From â€Å"NEWSWEEK Journal of 04. 06.2010, the spill has costed the company sums of money to the tune of over 19 billion dollars covering both the cost of cleanup and compensation to individuals affected and penalties to the American government. The performance of the company has dwindled in the recent days and in the first quarter of the year; the company has made losses amounting to over 20 billion dollars. Since corporate takeover entails two key types that include hostile and friendly takeover, BP takeover assumes that of hostile nature for the reason that the company is unwilling to engage in any dialogue relating to acquisition of its major assets.Hostile takeovers generally occur in situations where the board of directors is unwilling to relinquish its position and the company, while the company is performing way below par in terms of operations and financial management. This is the case with BP since the company CEO Tony Hayward has not viewed it has a possibility and has publicly stated that on a number of media outlets. A takeover in ensuring there is such form of safety can basically include a number of one or more different components within the totality of the institutionalized system.Such safety provisions include change in an organization and necessary management, safety policies, organizational procedures, and other emergency procedures and responses which have been put in place (Liu, 2006, p, 65). Advantages of BP takeover 1. One major advantage of BP proposed takeover is that once realized, the firm which was poorly managed prior to the acquisition will undergo valuable management and performance rectification due to changes that will occur in its management structure .The changes in corporate structure including modification and replacements of executives and senior staff will guarantee and repair the organization dented reputation. For the reason that the organization acquisition will involve a moderate debt to equity ratio, the company will also negotiate th e acquisition deal since it poses a controlling stake in the global market (Van & Schroeder, 2008, p, 20).The company goodwill in the world is very highly rated and possible acquisition of the company assets will entail the purchase of this valuable non- tangible asset hence provide opportunities for making more funds from the sale. 2. The company shareholders will also benefit from the returns emerging from the acquisition due to fact the company has a positive capital value attributed from large shareholder base ,assets and properties it owns in the world.With immense global presence, the BP buyout will promote employees and shareholder interests as maintaining the company effectiveness, efficiency and loyalty (Fox, et al, 2008, p, 87). The company benefits from strong market share and sound economic position hence even after the buyout, the company products will still remain favorable in the global market due to the consumer confidence established before the oil spill. 3. The BP issue will only involve acquisition of the company shares and assets, and this will entail the concept referred to as strategic takeover.This concept is advantageous to the company and the company acquiring it since the firm will select and buy assets that are favorable to them and they will be able to negotiate the right price for the products without full approval of the shareholder and other regulatory bodies. When it comes to the takeover process, the approach is mainly aimed in ensuring that any forms of weaknesses and strengths have been disclosed, and especially the ones which might have diverse impacts on the process and operations being carried out.For the reason that the company has huge amount of liabilities and increased level of debt, takeover by its competitors will reduce its taxable income hence leading to reduced tax payments. The company taking over BP will acquire both its assets and liabilities, thus the company will be saved the burden of paying and compensating the victims of the accidents and penalties to the American government.BP take over will promote efficiency gains since it will be able to eliminate corporate value destroying effects that emerge from excessive diversification hence it will be able to reduce the organization debt ratio and increase its equity portion (Dunning, J 2004, and p. 97). Disadvantages of the Takeover There are a number of problems which have to be noted with the BP proposed takeover. To begin with, the acquisition tests to be administered in establishing whether the company is profitable will be very inaccurate.This might end up resulting in cases where a very strong company is bought using false benchmarks or current situations without the evaluating the overall organizational position and performance (Mok & Tillaart, 1990, 76). If implemented as proposed, the organization corporate restructuring will greatly affect employees and its shareholders. The company will be forced to downsize its operations and c urrent workforce hence this will result to increased levels unemployment due to possibilities of employees being laid off.Large number of unemployed individuals will impact on the overall community hence hindering its economic development and opulence (Liu, 2006, p 58). BP has a global presence and sudden acquisition of its assets in some African and Asian countries will not be taken well since majority of people have an intimate touch with its products and trademark hence transfer of its assets to other organizations will affect its social standard and responsibility to the community (Roger, 2008, p ,36). Another issue is that many companies won’t agree the bid for BP takeover due to the fear of huge liabilities owned by the company from the oil spill.Most of BP shareholders are large multinational institutions in Britain like insurance and pension funds and the takeover of the company will critically affect the United Kingdom economy thus affecting lives of many Britons and other shareholders all over the world. Proposed bid from its rivals especially Exxon which is an American company will cause diplomatic problems between the US and Britain. Coming from bitter criticism from president obama, the cold ties will eventually increase if there is a takeover of BP by an American company (Peter & Paulson, 2009, p ,56).Another problem that is likely to happen if the event of the takeover the UK political establishment will lose public confidence for the reason that it does not support operations of the company and form this their would be a likelihood of political problems in Britain, this is because majority of Britons are shareholders . With controversial handling of the case by American leadership, possible takeover of the company by an American company will be seen as a planned agenda since in many occasions the politicians have said the company could have performed better if it was owned by Americans.Many critics of the proposed takeover argue that tra nsactions between BP and its competitors will harm and dent the long term competitiveness of the company (Kwon, 2008, p, 56). British Petroleum (BP): Strategic Plans BP as one of the most reputable companies in the world ,though affected with the oil spill ,it has been conducting a number of business as well as marketing strategies which come up with strategic plans aimed at future performances so that they can prevent future events from happening (Ransom, 2000,p ,76).With the recent oil spill crisis, the organization strategic plans involves restructuring of the management ,employment of competent staff and instilling of concepts of teamwork and working together to both employees and the management. The company productivity and performance have been drastically affected and the institution sales have reduced significantly leading to a drop in its share prices by more than 40 % (NEWSWEEK, 2010, p, 23) . The crisis has reduced its current customer base and at the same time it has red uced the company sales by more 35% .With this issue of underperformance in mind, the company so far is aimed at increasing the its social reputation and sales and at the very time being in a position of formulating major marketing strategies which are applicable and can help it reach all the customers around the world in which the corporation has been delivering its services (Sapienza & Grimm, 1997. p 87). The marketing strategy for the corporation that entails use of economies of scale and wide distribution networks, and the company is anticipating offering some of the lowest prices in the industry.Moreover, the company is promising to offer a low-price guarantee which will ultimately beat any competitor’s price or match their retail value (Dennet, 2009, p, 154). BP is trying to enlarge their customer base through various marketing venues that include Television advertisements which are aimed to increase brand awareness. Radio advertisements, Digital media (for example e-mai l subscriptions and the Internet) which will provide efficient ways to disseminate information, coupons, and free expert advice and product demonstrationsWithin the business, the strategic plan will be done by incorporating all stakeholders and engaging in appropriate decisions which will promote performance (Johnnson, 2010, p, 46). This proposed strategic marketing plan will entail analysis of the company’s strengths, their weaknesses, and measure the amounts of resources at disposal, and then come up with adequate strategic missions which ensure better performance (Madura, 2008, p, 45).When effected, such strategies will have long term effects and will make the company realize its goals within the stipulated time period. Effective leadership and decision making skills, and communication have also been emphasized as a key element towards realization from the oil spill catastrophe. Basically to avoid the proposed idea of takeover, it should be noted that, it is through proper coordination and employment of such long term strategic plans that the corporation will be able to emerge on top of its business operations (Armstrong, 2003, p 29).Recommended alternatives to avoid possible takeover The current oil spill crisis calls for innovative product and development especially in light of the growing negative publicity that is associated with environmental pollution and loss of jobs (Robbins, 2008, p, 76). Therefore, the option that should be pursued by BP is for them to implement and initiate strategic development and management strategies that will make them remain viable in the energy market.As BP proceeds into the future, they must be vigilant to avoid poor decision making processes which will hinder them in handling major crisis since catastrophes are some times inevitable (Laura & Torrington, 2005, p ,98). BP’s biggest risk exposure includes: unpredictable economic and political conditions, increased prices in fuel and other supplies, customer re tention, and relations with foreign countries. In order to be prepared and least effected, BP must develop strategies that will allow them to remain profitable in an unsteady market.Suggestions would be for BP to remain current on the risks of oil spill and aware of the current and future relations with foreign countries. Another suggestion would be for BP to try and negotiate compensations and government penalties. (Brodie, 2010, p 78). BP has been one of today’s most respected corporations in the history of the world because it has the highest degree of business culture as well as ethics. Generally, this organization has been able to create highly rated performance when it comes to organizational effectiveness.The creation of more and more new management groups can be a good approach which can enable handling of the key problems which have been faced within the company and its eventual operations (Sorrow, 2009, p, 89). Also, there should be the presence of a dynamic and div erse workforce which can effectively ensure that this company is able to perform better within all its key operations because different ideas shall end up being brought together from people with development experience backgrounds thus improving its performance drastically.Another important thing that can lead to a great deal effectiveness at the BP shall be in the use of newer forms of technology thus being able to come up with better and intelligent products and services which can enhance all means product and social development thus increasing the customer base for the company (Robbins, 2008. p 56). If they are able to do so, they will be able to avoid risks resulting from takeovers.BP must devise strategies to offset problems resulting from ineffective management and lack of teamwork in part of employees to avoid occurrence of similar problems which have been recorded to be detrimental in its history of existence (Jeffrey & Bratton, 2001, p, 59). The rapid advancement of technolo gy along with the growth of robotics provides many opportunities for BP.If the company continues to focus on and improve their performance management, they have every bit of potential to gain a competitive edge in the industry . Social trends are moving towards a holistic and humble approach in all areas of life, BP does not want to get caught playing catch-up to its competitors. By following this strategy, BP will have the opportunity to gain revenue and increase market share regardless of the recent crisis (Auerbach & Alan, 1991, p 36). ConclusionTakeover is a very important approach which has to be keenly considered by BP so as to improve their performance by engaging all the individuals in the organization in acting and working in a manner which shall guarantee better performance with the organization This process is what holds the key towards the future performance of the business or organization and making it possible for it to achieve its goals within the stated time period. In that case, while adopting these patterns, managers should be aware of the functions and the tasks which have to done and achieved during the management process (Fox & Marcus.2008, p, 34). Generally after takeover, there are no winners or losers. In this kind environment, people normally appreciate and accept as true that thinking and decisions making are better when done cooperatively and individuals are able to show professionalism and discipline in workplaces ,and provide essential considerations that can help the work environment run efficiently. Also if a problem emerge or arise in the workplaces, employees should not hesitate to talk up on the issue. Individuals and organizations should understand what takeover means so that they can be guided by it and function diligently.Similarly workers and employers should be turned on by the strategy so that they can tap resources and establish a successful business entity. In conclusion we can say that takeover is a very important con cept in business and it encourages competition in the global market and promote common respect for each market leaders opinions and capabilities, Promoting takeovers in a firm is creating a good work culture that values collaboration (Brodie, 2010, p ,98). Bibliography Auerbach, Alan J. 1991. Corporate Takeovers: Causes and Consequences. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Ansell, S. , & Park, J. 2003. ‘BP Tech Trends.’ Education Week, 22(35), 43. Retrieved from Academic Search Complete database.

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Beegle Book Review Assignment - Directions & Questions - Essay Example Dr. Donna Beegle wrote this book to help people know real poverty, and be the one to make a difference in the globe. This challenges readers to view poverty in a different light and to add to it try to use the strategies that she has proposed in trying to eradicate it. She also strives to influence her readers through giving both her personal account and clearly outlined statistics and facts. The author shows how she also experienced generational poverty at first hand. From this it can be deducted that she is trying to accomplish or ensure that no one faces what she faced when she was still growing up. (Beegle, M. D.2007). The author of the book see poverty, be the difference defines poverty as a complex issue whose solution can only come from any individual who is willing to be taught, comprehend and work together to deal with its impact. From this definition it can be deduced that that the Beegle believes anybody who is willing is in a position of eradicating poverty in the society. This is despite the gender, age, social status, or locality. He or she should only try to understand the real meaning of poverty before developing strategies that can help to solve it. He describes poverty as complex because it can be said it is connected to various issues. The author tries to make her readers understand that living in poverty is not a permanent condition. Moreover, anyone who wants to get out of poverty is able. She gives evidence of this by telling her story of how she lived in extreme poverty but ultimately she ended up succeeding in life. Moreover, by giving statistics she tries to make her readers understand the current trends of poverty so as to k now how to go about it. The statistics also aid the readers to identify on parts or things that they will concentrate on mostly when trying to make a difference. The action that Beegle propose should be taken so as to

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Economic Policies - Essay Example Such happened after the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) permeated 36 billion yuan (or HK$45.2 billion) to be fed to its banking system via bills and forward bond repurchase agreements which motivated short term loans in the market that was scaled up last month (Reuters, 2013, p. 1; The Economist, 2013, p. 1). Banking sector current condition While they are hopeful that the money market rates will be normalized by July, but economists began to note that the bond repurchase in seven days slumped to 69 bps to 4.76 % since June, the zenith period for liquidity squeeze (Reuters, 2013, p. 1). The overnight repossession rate dropped 63 bps to 3.79 % and the 14-day rate lurched nearly 100 bps to 5.09% based on reports (Reuters, 2013, p. 1; The Economist, 2013, p. 1). ... 1; The Economist, 2013, p. 1). Critics pointed that China lacked the capacity exercise the standard monetary policy and governance pointing the lack of better stimulus packages that is best exercised by the Japanese government (The Economist, 2013, p. 1). It is most poised for deleveraging its system noting how its credit system grows expediently than its annual growth domestic product (GDP) (The Economist, 2013, p. 1). The total social financing lowered its ratio hence, affecting its interbank fiscal condition with the cash at critical situation. Need for reform Some critics recommended that structural reform should be undertaken for Chinese banking system, suggesting the need to undertake initiatives to liberalize the interest rates and to raising prices of utilities. The problem is further exacerbated by the heavy public spending and tax cuts (Dobson & Kashyap, 2006, pp. 103-108). Its economy is likewise heavily dependent on exports and its government needs to grapple with its hig h level economic issues with its neighbours and with countries with which they have trading relations (Dobson et al., 2006, pp. 103-108). The credit ratio of the country also scaled up, higher than what they have from its monetary conditions in the past. While it’s admitted that increasing credits for domestic entrepreneurs of China could help improve the resource needs of these small businesses but the returns remained undertrained, and so is the payment (Dobson et al., 2006, pp. 103-108). It is not likewise certain if these entrepreneurs possessed such credit worthiness that would warrant fast and expedient repayment of loans and interests, especially so that most

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Communiction Theories - Essay Example For example, the phrase â€Å"Where are you going†, without the question mark will be read flatly whereas, when written in the form, â€Å"Where are you going?†; there is an indication that the speaker should have a falling pitch. Moreover, the importance of punctuation marks are seen in the meanings relayed in the sentences. For instance, â€Å"They are Grants sisters† and â€Å"They are Grant’s sisters† imply different meanings where the former presents two probable corrections. First, it may be considered that the writer missed a word and can be corrected as â€Å"They are the Grants sisters† meaning, they are the sisters from the Grants family. Secondly, it could be edited to form the second sentence with the apostrophe, distinctly stating that they are the sisters of Grant. It is vital not only to place the punctuation marks on the right places but also to use the correct punctuation mark because they can change the tone of a sentence which consequently will change the meaning of the sentence. â€Å"You are good.†, is a statement. â€Å"You are good!†, indicates an excited feeling towards the person being appreciated. â€Å"You are good?†, poses a challeng ing tone to the person being referred to regarding goodness. These few examples show how punctuation marks affect communication so much that students and professionals alike are drawn to the study of

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American Psycho - Movie Review Example In this essay, Messier analyzes the paradigm related to the term, eloquently propounded by Robert Stam as â€Å"intertextual dialogism†. The relation between the literary texts and its cinematic adaptations in the recent years as claimed by Vartan has suffered from a lack of narration between the literary text and its cinematic adaptation. Vartan claims that it would be a very logo centric approach and straightforward inference if the cinematic adaptations of the literary texts are coined as â€Å"unfaithful to and/or of lesser value† in relation to their mother text from which the cinematic production has evolved without taking into consideration the huge realm of socio-cultural context upon which they evolve and get dispersed. In order to establish this content of the essay, Vartan meticulously chose one of the best cinemas of the recent times, which is an adaptation of a text. American Psycho is a novel by Bret Easton Ellis published in the year 1991. In the year 200 0, director Marry Harron prepared a film out of the Ellis’ text which Vartan and the critics following the same school of thoughts considered for a close reading. They considered both the works from a very close contour resulting into the establishment of the discourse that would give a shape to the interpretations, receptions and dispersions of both the works under a critical and ideological light. Vartan begins the paper by providing a short overview of the text, â€Å"American Psycho† by Ellis and then introduces the amount of controversy inherent within the content of the text before the essay intends to discuss the myriad ways by which the visual poetics of the novel operate as a cut-throat and dissecting critique by figuring the transition of the aesthetics related with the sexual violence which Vartan views as a potent trend in the contemporary consumer culture. Next, the essay takes a turn and launches the comparison of the text by Ellis with that of its cinema tic adaptation of Harron and intends to discuss the shortcomings inherent in the novel which shocks the audiences. Contrarily, according to Vartan, the film by Harron provides a social commentary keeping the plot of the film at a safe distance which actually facilitated it to became more soothing (Messier, â€Å"Visual Poetics, Intertextuality, and the Transfiguration of Ideology: An "Eye" for an "I" in Mary Harron's Cinematic Adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis's "American Psycho"). Vartan in order to establish the propositions suggested by him at the very outset of the essay divides the essay into four sub-sections with intriguing titles like, ‘ Shock and Scandal: American Psycho as Postmodern Pastiche’, ‘ From Pastiche to Parody, or, an â€Å"I† for an â€Å"Eye†, ‘ Transfigurations: Excess, Affect, and the Gaze’ and ‘The Politics of Adaptation: Poetics, Intertextuality, and Ideology’. These sections individually throw elabo rate light on the propositions inherent within the essay required to establish the point of Vartan effectively. The section, ‘ Shock and Scandal: American Psycho as Postmodern Pastiche’ discusses the amount of problem the film, ‘American Psycho’ was about to face long before its date of release owing to the fact that it was a cinematic adaptation of a text which was already condemned as, â€Å" sadistic, pornographic , misogynistic and loathsome†. The negative reception according to Vartan did create an inquisitive pursuit and rage to view the film as it was thought to capture a few of its turbulent sexually violent passages, but Vartan asserts that maintenance of the distance from the stark

What is a strategic control system what role does accounting play in a Essay

What is a strategic control system what role does accounting play in a strategic control system are the strategic management accounting in Caterpillar effecti - Essay Example The process can be considered as a fundamental due to the fact that it involves even the strategic management accounting as one of the essential aspects. Basically SMA is one of the specializing areas in strategic control systems due to the fact that it deals primarily on management accounting issues specifically by using data and information related to finances and accounting (SMA Supplementary Notes 2-3). The strategic control management then can be considered essential in the operation of the whole system and in the specific aspects of the operation as well. In relation to management accounting, the said process can be considered to be involved in the study of the different groups involved in the market along with the market’s behaviour, the determination of most effective solutions and implementation of the said strategies (SMA Supplementary Notes 3). The main role of strategic control system in accounting is evident in the dimensions covered by the SMA. Specifically, it is the planning of possible projects and implementations of different plans related to financial issues. Due to the characteristic of being strategic, there are different alternatives and contingencies that are presented to ensure the success of the operation. It is important to consider though that management accounting is not the sole field wherein strategic control system is involve. Although majority of the companies concentrate on the strategies to improve and achieve profits for the company, the coverage of the system is extensive due to the involvement in different aspects and departments of the company or organization. Based on the study by Ittner & Larcker, the main processes included in the strategic control system are the strategic implementation process, the internal and the external monitoring (3). The said processes are applied

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Leading Innovation and Change - Research Paper Example We elaborate the role of leader to bring the change and innovation in the organization, its impact on the people working in the organization and other stakeholders, we also discuss the peoples' resistance towards the change and innovation and the leaders strategy to overcome these types of reactions. In other hand we discuss the successful and unsuccessful change and innovation to evaluate the change and innovation, as well as did an assessment of the performance of leader as a leader of innovation and change and also include an action plan to support the further development.This assignment discusses all the aspects related to the innovation and change, like in this study, we critically evaluate the theories of innovation and change and leadership of innovation and change, assess the performance of leader of innovation and change and develop further plans to support the future development related to the innovation and change. The innovation and change are interrelated with each other and the factors, which are affecting both of them are the same. The leadership is necessary for bringing in the innovation and change whether at the individual level or organizational level. The importance of the leadership to bring in the innovation is gradually increasing worldwide because a leader has the ability to give the understanding to others related to something new, ability to convince people towards the improvement and also a leader can replace old ideas and techniques with new ideas and techniques easily (Aitken and Higgs 2010). ... Leader analyzes the situation as where the change is needed and develop an action plan according to the change required in order to bring in and implement the change. Now, the question is how to bring in the change? Who brings in the change? Why to bring in the change? These are some questions, which normally arise while bringing in a change and in its implementation, there are many other questions related to the change and innovation can arise and the person who brings that change has to give the answer of all these questions that can be convincing for the people who have concerns in respect to the coming changes. (Aitken and Higgs 2010) With the passage of time, the world is getting advanced and new technologies are introduced, organizational structure and systems are introduced and new ways of doing diverse works are presented, organizations have to adopt these changes otherwise they will not be able to survive in the digital world. Manager of an organization doing work in any of the situation must face the situation of change, he has to analyze the nature of the change in the initial level of the implementation of change that is the most appropriate way of managing the changing situations. First of all, he should analyze the need of change whether the change is required to take place in the organization or not and then he should find out whether the change it is appropriate according to the organizational environment or not. Since introducing the change, first thing is to recognize the need for this change like if there is a problem in working with the present ways of doing work, the work is not more efficient with the present ways and there are some opportunities existent, which encourage to bring in a

Strategies for Promoting Democracy in Iraq Term Paper

Strategies for Promoting Democracy in Iraq - Term Paper Example This is usually entrenched in the laws of the land. It involves social, cultural and economic conditions that provide free and fair practice of self-determination politically. It hails from a Greek word demokratia whose meaning is â€Å"rule of the people†. This word can be divided into two. Demos meaning â€Å"people† and Kratos meaning â€Å"power†. Democracy contrasts other forms of government like monarchy and aristocracy /oligarchy. Monarchy is where power is held by one individual while aristocracy is where power is held by a group of people. Contemporary governments tend to have a mixture of all these elements. There are several types of democracy (Lijphart 150-250). The two basic forms of democracy are a direct democracy and representative or indirect democracy. In direct democracies, citizens have direct participation in the decision-making process within the government. In indirect  democracies, citizens elect representatives (Lijphart 200-250). He ex plains that in modern democracies, the sovereign power is retained by the people while the political power is exercised through the representatives (200-250). He further explains that an electoral democracy government is determined by popular sovereignty (200-300). People in the country determine who will govern them. They do this by voting. Liberal democracy is one in which both sovereignty and liberties are manifested. The civil society is very active and restraints the government from misusing power. A substantive democracy is a working democracy. Under the representative democracy, we have a parliamentary, presidential and constitutional democracy. Parliamentary democracy is a democracy where the government is chosen by elected representatives (Lijphart 200-250). The government in this case is checked by the legislative parliament elected by people. The legislature can dismiss the prime minister under this system of government. This happens by passing a vote of no confidence. Th e presidential system of democracy is where the public elects the president through general elections (Lijphart 200-250).

Shakespeare and Kafka Essay Example for Free

Shakespeare and Kafka Essay Both Shakespeare and Franz Kafta were the men of their contemporary world, placing the world as they see with irony and forms a juxtaposition of a psychological trauma of man troubled by the societies unwarranted interference and trouble in their lives. Shakespear’s tragedy and Kafta’s trial are the tragedies and both of their protagonists have their tragic end not only due to the circumstances created by the society but also by their own mental traumas and thoughts. But, there are certain differences between the two, Hamlet’s King died more due to his moral dilemma while Kafta have to bear the consequences of the bureaucratic rules and laws of the land. Shakespeare uses the technique of inner struggle of a man who is confounded with the fact that her mother has married with her husband’s murdered and the plans of revenge he intended to take. The Hamlet’s trauma was his thoughts about the various moral issues. The biggest moral issue in front of him came when he got revelation of the truth about his mother’s infidelity. He was fixed in a dilemma was it right to kill his mother as a punishment?. He was caught so much in the dilemma that he delayed taking revenge resulting in the circumstances that proved tragic for him. Though he took revenge in the end but at the cost of his life and also of others to whom he matters the most particularly his beloved. Trial is also same in the sense that it also ended in tragedy yet it is different in the sense that Joseph K was giving unsuccessful fight against the court to denounce his death sentence. It was only in the end he accepted his fate and himself summoned his call of death. If Shakespeare would have written â€Å"The Trial† then Joseph, the main protagonist of the story would have been a man of higher status in the society and would have been more a tale of suffering. His misfortune would have been something exceptional and extraordinary. When Joseph K was informed that he would be arrested, Shakespeare would have turned the character as the most humble without any power to face resistance. Joseph would have been incapable to make quick decisions, though he would have been capable to make indecisive and rash decision but would never have been able to take planned or premeditated action. As in the exact story of Kafka where Joseph is shown making efforts for his release, calling his attorney and even went to the court on the appointed day for the hearings as the demand of the law of the land, Shakespeare would have twisted the story here. He would have made Joseph lament of the tragedy going to befall on him. Joseph would have given himself to mediation and reflection and in this process he would have gone on delaying in his efforts to secure his release. Joseph would have thought too much about the circumstances befallen on him before making efforts of his actions. Shakespeare would have allowed him to commit the actions and commissions and cause him great mental agony and not only physical pain that he was going to endure. And later as â€Å"Hamlet†, he would have tried to find out the main reason behind his alleged arrest and trials and who were responsible for his so tragic fate, which was never revealed to him by Kafka. In tragedy by Shakespeare, the hero normally comes to the realization of truth of which he had been always unaware of and as Aristotle himself said, â€Å"a change from ignorance to knowledge†. (Mcmanus, Online) Therefore in â€Å"The Trial†, Shakespeare would have made Joseph make efforts in gaining the knowledge and reason behind what has made his fate most tragic. Later Joseph would have grown in stature and wisdom, as Shakespeare would have made him realize the fact that reason is not enough. An over reliance on reason and belief and untrammeled free will are hallmarks of the Shakespearian villain, and the heroes learn better. Joseph would have made to realize that he should have resort to much better efforts while dealing with the crises and situations, which are out of his control. On the other hand, Kafka would have also used the elements so typical of him as a writer in Hamlet. He would have created Hamlet as a person who would not be merely pondering and reasoning on the causes of his befallen fate but would have strived to fight for his rights against the unjustified justice. He would have made Hamlet, instead of entering into the moral dilemma of whims and his passion for his mother, strived to take immediate action against the culprits who were responsible for his father’s death. His anguish and emotional trauma would have been very less as compared to the trauma inflicted by Joseph. Where in Hamlet, Shakespeare has created an element of Ghost, Kafka would have made the appearance of divine figure like that of a priest who would have taught Hamlet to accept his fate as what is destined for him has to happen. For Kafka, guilt is a feeling that no man can avoid whatever his or her experience may be and in Hamlet, Kafka would have definitely used the element of guilt. He would have made Hamlet realized his mother and uncle of guilt instead of entering into moral dilemma himself and make them face the trials. Here Hamlet would have been realized the fact that it is not important that an individual is actually guilty of an offence but what is important is that crime has occurred and he knew the culprits and therefore they ought to be put in trial and convicted. Another aspect to it is an issue of revenge. Hamlet wanted to take the revenge of the death of his father that was contradictory to the contemporary society in which Hamlet was written. This revenge implies taking the law in one’s own hands in order to satisfy an inner urge, although in civilized society the function of fighting the wrongs done to individuals belong to the state or the government. If Kafka had written Hamlet, he would have made Hamlet t try to follow the course of law to punish the culprits. But, he would have made Hamlet unsuccessful in his efforts as the law takes its own course and by that time Claudius would have been set free and took an adequate opportunity to bring Hamlet to his tragic death. In other words, death of Hamlet could not have occurred due to the moral flaws in the character of Hamlet but due to the circumstances that were out of his control. In spite of his efforts, Hamlet would never have been able to bring real culprits on the punishment panel. Kafka would have made Hamlet a story of the faults in the justice system of the contemporary society instead of the moral flaw in the character that would have made his end inevitable.   In Kafta;s version of Hamlet too, would have also died in the end but in a different way. Hamlet would have never been able to find truth of the conspiracy behind his father’s death. As with the Mouse Trap’ in Hamlet was the major victory for Hamlet as he was able to contrive his father’s murderer but the parable of Kafka’s would have made Hamlet frustrated as it neither contained any golden rule nor even suggested a mode of behavior under particular conditions. Hamlet would have not learnt anything and died a meaningless life bearing the misery of human existence. In the end Hamlet says, â€Å"the rest is silence†, this dialogue is an exploration of the true nature and life of human beings. Hamlet realized the fact that for all human beings, the ultimate destiny is death. Finally all human beings have to attain the death, which is inevitable and have to accept their ultimate faith. Hamlet confronts, recognizes and accepts the condition of being man and the last death wringed in him final cry of passion. But it is not simply the acceptance of death that Hamlet wants to unveil but within this end is the paradigm of complete mysteries of life and along with it is the mystery of evil. The realization of the reality of the death and the mystery of life he felt in the graveyard where the bodies of scheming politicians, the hollow courtier, the tricky lawyer, emperor or the queen and the beautiful young maidens laid.   Whereas when Joseph K said â€Å"like a dog†, Kafka struck at the contemporary society with a tool of an irony. Joseph K.’s demise is the demise of all human beings who had to face the courts and trials without any question. All the human beings are the dogs in the hands of the society and have to accept the fate what has been destined for them. This is a difference between ‘like a dog’ and ‘the rest is silence’. The similarity between the two lies in the fact that fate is the biggest thing in the life of human beings and every one has to accept their fate. Works Cited McManus, Barbara F. â€Å"Outline of Aristotles Theory of Tragedy in the POETICS†. Internet. (1999). Available: http://www.cnr.edu/home/bmcmanus/poetics.html, October 17, 2008.

High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) 214

High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) 214 Introduction High performance liquid chromatography 214 is the most widely used of all of the analytical separation techniques. The reasons for the popularity of the method is its sensitivity, ready adaptability to accurate quantitative determinations, suitability for separating non-volatile species or thermally fragile ones, wide spread applicability to substance that are of prime interest to industry, many fields of science and the public. The applications of chromatography have grown explosively in the last fifty years owing not only to the development of several new types of chromatographic techniques but also to the growing need by scientist for better methods for characterizing complex mixtures. General methodology for the development of new HPLC methods 215-228 HPLC method development follows the series of steps summarized below. Information on sample, objective of separation. Need for special HPLC procedure, sample pretreatment etc. Choice of detector and detector settings. Choosing LC method, preliminary run, estimation of best separation conditions. Optimization of separation conditions. Check for problems or requirement for special procedure. a) Recovery of purified material   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   b) Quantitative calibration  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   c) Qualitative method Validate method for routine laboratory use. A good method development strategy should require only as many experimental runs as are necessary to achieve the desired final result. Finally, method development should be simple as possible, yet it should allow the use of sophisticated tools such as computer modeling if these are available. Before the beginning of method development, it is necessary to review what is known about the sample in order to define the goals of separation. The kinds of sample related information that can be important are summarized in Table-7.1. Table-8.1 Important information concerning sample composition and properties Number   of compounds present in the sample Chemical structures of components Molecular weights of compounds PKa values of compounds UV spectra of compounds Concentration range of various compounds in samples of interest Sample solubility   Ã‚   The chemical composition of the sample can provide valuable clues for the best choice of initial conditions for an HPLC separation. Objectives of separation The objectives of HPLC separation need to be specified clearly include. The use of HPLC to isolate purified sample components for spectral identification or quantitative analysis. It may be necessary to separate all degradants or impurities from a product for reliable content assay. In quantitative analysis, the required levels of accuracy and precision should be known (a precision of  ± 1 to 2% is usually achievable). Whether a single HPLC procedure is sufficient for raw material or one or more formulations and / or different procedures are desired for the analysis of formulations? When the number of samples for analysis at one time is greater than 10, a run time of less than 20 min. will be oftenly important. Knowledge on the desired HPLC equipment, experience and academic training the operators have. Sample pretreatment and detection Samples for analysis come in various forms such as: Solutions ready for injections. Solutions that require dilution, buffering, addition of an internal standard or other volumetric manipulation. Solids that must first be dissolved or extracted. Samples that require pretreatment to remove interference and/or protect the column or equipment from damage. Most samples for HPLC analysis require weighing and / or volumetric dilution before injection. Best results are often obtained when the composition of the sample solvent is close to that of the mobile phase since this minimizes baseline upset and other problems. Some samples require a partial separation ( pretreatment) prior to HPLC, because of need to remove interference, concentrate sample analytes or eliminate â€Å"column killer†. In many cases the development of an adequate sample pretreatment can be challenging than achieving a good HPLC separation. The detector selected should sense all sample components of interest. Variable-wavelength ultraviolet (UV) detectors normally are the first choice, because of their convenience and applicability for most samples. For this reason information on the UV spectra can be an important aid for method development. When the UV response of the sample is inadequate, other detectors are available (flourescence, electrochemical, PDA etc.) or the sample can be derivatized for enhanced detection. Developing the method for the separation Selecting an HPLC method and initial conditions If HPLC is chosen for the separation, the next step is to classify the sample as regular or special. Regular samples means typical mixtures of small molecules (    Table-8.2 Handling of special sample Sample Requirements Inorganic ions Detection is primary problems; use ion chromatography Isomers Some isomers can be separated by reversed-phase HPLC and are then classified as regular samples; better separations of isomers are obtainable using either (1) normal-phase HPLC or (2) reversed-phase separations with cyclodextrin-silica columns. Enantiomers These compounds require â€Å"chiral† conditions for their separations. Biological Several factors make samples or this kind â€Å"special†; molecular conformation, polar functionality and a wide range of hydrophobicity. Macromolecules â€Å"Big† molecules require column packing with large pores  Ã‚  (>> 10-nm diameters); in addition, biological molecules require special conditions as noted above. Table-8.3 Preferred experimental conditions for the initial HPLC separation Separation variable Preferred initial choice Column Dimensions (length, ID) 15 x 0.46 cm Particle size 5 mma Stationary phase C8 or C18 Mobile phase Solvent A and B Buffer-acetonitrile % B 80-100%b Buffer (compound, pH, concentration) 25mM potassium phosphate 2.0 Additives (e.g., amine modifiers, ion pair reagents) Do not use initially Flow rate 1.5–2.0 ml/min Temperature 35-45 ºC Sample Size Volumed >25 mL Weightd B : Polar solvent  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   a 3.5 mm particles are an alternative using a 7.5 cm column b For an initial isocratic run; an initial gradient run is preferred. c No buffer required for neutral samples; for pH d Smaller values required for smaller-volume columns (e.g., 7.50.46-cm, 3.5-mm column). Table-8.4 Physical properties of silica supports for some C 18 columns Column (mL/mL) Pore diameter (nm) Surface area (m2/g) Percent Porosity Hypersil ODS 12 170 57 LiChrosorb C18 10 355 71 Novapak C18 6 N/Aa N/Aa Nucleosil C18 10 350 69` Symmetry C18 10 335 66 Zorbax ODS 6 300 55 Zorbax Rx, SB, XDB 8 180 50 a N/A : Not available On the basis of the initial exploratory run isocratic or gradient elution can be selected as most suitable. If typical reversed-phase conditions provide insufficient sample retention, suggesting the use of either ion pair on normal phase HPLC. Alternatively, the sample may be strongly retained with 100% acetonitrile as mobile phase, suggesting the use of non-aqueous reversed-phase (NARP) chromatography or normal phase HPLC. Some characteristics of reversed-phase and other HPLC methods are summarized below. Table-8.5 Characteristics of primary HPLC methods Method / description/ columns Preferred method Reversed-phase HPLC Uses water – organic mobile phase Columns: C18 (ODS), C8, phenyl, trimethylsilyl (TMS), Cyano First choice for most samples, especially neutral or non-ionisable compounds that dissolve in water-organic mixtures Ion-pair HPLC Uses water-organic mobile phase a buffer to control pH and an ion pair reagent. Column : C18, C8, cyano. Acceptable choice for ionic or ionizable compounds, especially bases or cations. Normal phase HPLC Uses mixtures of organic solvents as mobile phase Columns: Cyano, diol, amino and silica. Good second choice when reversed-phase or ion-pair HPLC is ineffective, first choice for lipophilic samples that do not dissolve well in water-organic mixtures, first choice for mixtures of isomers and for preparative-scale HPLC (silica best) Getting started on method development One approach is to use an isocratic mobile phase of some average solvent strength (e.g., 50%) organic solvent. A better alternative is to use a very strong mobile phase with (80-100% B), then reduce %B as necessary. The initial separation with 100%B results in rapid elution of the entire sample, but few groups will separate. Decreasing solvent strength shows the rapid separation of all components with a much longer run time, with a broadening of later bands and reduced detection sensitivity. Improving the separation and repeatable separation Generally the chromatographers will consider several aspects of the separation, as summarized in Table-8.6. Table-8.6 Objectives of separation in HPLC method development Objectivesa Comment Resolution Precise and rugged quantitative analysis requires that Rs be greater than 1.5. Separation time Quantitation   Ã‚ £ 2% (1 SD) for assays;  £ 5% for less-demanding analysis;  £15% for trace analysis. Pressure Peak height Narrow peaks are desirable for large signal / noise ratios Solvent consumption   Minimum mobile-phase use per run is desirable. a Roughly in order of decreasing importance but may vary with analysis requirements. Separation or resolution is a primary requirement in quantitative HPLC. The resolution (Rs) value should be maximum (Rs>1.5) favours maximum precision. Resolution usually degrades during the life of the column and can vary from day to day with minor fluctuations in separation conditions. Therefore, values of Rs = 2 or greater should be the goal during method development for simple mixtures. Such resolution will favour both improved assay precision and greater method ruggedness. Some HPLC assays do not require base line separation of the compounds of interest (qualitative analysis). In such cases only enough separation of individual components is required to provide characteristic retention times for peak identification. The time required for a separation (run time = retention time for base band) should be as short as possible and the total time spent on method development is reasonable (runtimes 5 to 10 minutes are desirable). Conditions for the final HPLC method should be selected so that the operating pressure with a new column does not exceed 170 bar (2500 psi) and upper pressure limit below 2000 psi is desirable. There are two reasons for that pressure limit, despite the fact that most HPLC equipment can be operated at much higher pressures. First, during the life of a column, the back pressure may rise by a factor of as much as 2 due to the gradual plugging of the column by particular matter. Second, at lower pressures When dealing with more challenging samples or if the goals of separation are particularly stringent, a large number of method development runs may be required to achieve acceptable separation. Repeatable separation As the experimental runs described above are being carried out, it is important to confirm that each chromatogram can be repeated. When changing conditions (mobile phase, column, and temperature) between method development experiments, enough time must elapse for the column to come into equilibrium with a new mobile phase and temperature. Usually column equilibration is achieved after passage of 10 to 20 column volumes of the new mobile phase through the column. However, this should be confirmed by carrying out a repeat experiment under the same conditions. When constant retention times are observed in two such back-to-back repeat experiments ( ± 0.5% or better), it can be assumed that the column is equilibrated and the experiments are repeatable. Completing the HPLC method development The final procedure should meet all the objectives that were defined at the beginning of method development. The method should also be robust in routine operation and usable by all laboratories and personnel for which it is intended. Quantitation and method validation One of the strengths of HPLC is that is an excellent quantitative analytical technique. HPLC can be used for the quantitation of the primary or major component of a sample (including pure samples) for mixture of many compounds at intermediate concentrations and for the assessment of trace impurity concentrations in matrix. Method validation, according to the United States Pharmacopoeia (USP), is performed to ensure that an analytical methodology is accurate, specific, reproducible and rugged over the specified range that an analyte will be analysed. Method validation provides an assurance of reliability during normal use and is sometimes described as the process of providing documented evidence that the method does what it is intended to do. According to USP, the method validation involves eight steps as given below. Precision Accuracy Limit of detection Limit of quantitation Specificity Linearity and range Ruggedness Robustness Precision and accuracy: Already discussed in chapter-1. Linearity The linearity of the method is a measure of how well a calibration plot of response v/s concentration approximates a straight line, or how well the data fit to the linear equation. Y = aX + b Where ‘Y’ is the response, ‘X’ is the concentration, ‘a’ is the slope and ‘b’ is the intercept of a line fit to the data. Ideally, a linear relationship is preferred (b = 0) because it is more precise, easier for calculations and can be defined with fewer standards. Also, UV detector response for a dilute sample is expected to follow Beer’s law and be linear. Therefore, a linear calibration gives evidence that the system is performing properly throughout the concentration range of interest. Generally in HPLC, if we are using internal standard, then the linearity plot is to be drawn by taking concentration of the analyte on x-axis and the ratio of area under the curve (AUC) of analyte to AUC of internal standard (IS) on y-axis. The resulting plot slope, intercept and correlation coefficient provide the desired information on linearity. A linearity correlation coefficient above 0.999 is acceptable for most methods. Limit of detection (LOD) The limit of detection (LOD) is the smallest concentration that can be detected reliably. The LOD represents the concentration of analyte that would yield a signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio of 3. Limit of quantitation (LOQ) The LOQ is the concentration that can be quantitated reliably with a specified level of accuracy and precision. The LOQ represents the concentration of analyte that would yield a signal-to-noise ratio of 10. LOD and LOQ can be determined by using the following expressions. LOD  Ã‚  Ã‚   =  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   3 X N / B LOQ  Ã‚  Ã‚   =  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   10 X N / B Where N is the noise estimate, is the standard deviation of the peak area ratio of analyte to IS (5 injections) of the drugs. B is the slope of the corresponding calibration curve. The LOD and LOQ values determined during method validation are affected by the separation conditions, columns, reagents and especially instrumentation and data systems. Ruggedness Method ruggedness is defined as the reproducibility of results when the method is performed under actual use conditions. This includes different analysts, laboratories, columns, instruments, sources, chemicals, solvents etc. method ruggedness may not be known when a method is first developed, but insight is obtained during subsequent use of that method. Robustness The concept of robustness of an analytical procedure has been defined by the ICH as â€Å" a measure of its capacity to remain unaffected by small, but deliberate variations in method parameters†. The robustness of a method is the ability to remain unaffected by small changes in parameters such as pH of the mobile phase, temperature, percentage of organic solvent and buffer concentration etc. to determine robustness of the method experimental conditions were purposely altered and chromatographic characteristics were evaluated. To study the pH effect on the retention (K1) of the drug, buffer pH is to be changed by 0.2 units. At certain point, retention will increase at any pH above and below of the pH unit. The effect of temperature on the retention characteristics (K1) of the drug is to be studied by changing the temperature in steps 2 ºC from room temperature to 80 ºC and see the effect of temperature on the resolution and peak shape. Effect of percentage organic strength on retention is to be studied by varying the percentage of organic solvents like acetonitrile, methanol etc. from 0 to 2% while the other mobile phase contents are held constant and observe the K1. At certain point decreases in K1 observed with increase in the level of organic solvent. Effect of buffer concentration should be checked at three concentration levels i.e. 0.025 M, 0.05 M and 0.1 M and observe retention time and resolution. Stability To generate reproducible and reliable results, the samples, standards and reagents used for the HPLC method must be stable for a reasonable time (e.g., One day, one week, one month, depending on the need). For example, the analysis of even a single sample may require 10 or more chromatographic runs to determine system suitability, including standard concentrations to create a working analytical curve and duplicate or triplicate injections of the sample to be assayed. Therefore, a few hours of standard and sample solution stability can be required even for a short (10 min.) separation. When more than one sample is analyzed, automated, over night runs often are performed for better laboratory efficiency. Typically, 24 hours stability is desired for all solutions and reagents that need to be prepared for each analysis. Mobile phases should be chosen to avoid stability problems, especially the use of amine additives or specific solvents. For example, mobile phase containing THF (tetra hydrofuran) are known to be susceptible to oxidation, therefore, the mobile phase should be prepared daily with fresh THF. Some buffered mobile phases cause problems for example, phosphate and acetate provide good media for microbial growth. Sodium oxide (0.1%) is often added to the mobile phase buffer to inhibit such growth, adding more than 5% of organic solvent is also effective. Long term column stability is critical for method ruggedness. Even the best HPLC column will eventually degrade and lose its initial performance, often as a function of the number of samples injected. System suitability System suitability experiments can be defined as tests to ensure that the method can generate results of acceptable accuracy and precision. The requirements for system suitability are usually developed after method development and validation have been completed. The criteria selected will be based on the actual performance of the method as determined during its validation. For example, if sample retention times forms part of the system suitability criteria, their variation (SD) during validation can be determined, system suitability might then require that retention times fall within a  ±3 SD range during routine performance of the method. The USP (2000) defines parameters that can be used to determine system suitability prior to analysis. These parameters include plate number (N), tailing factor, k and / or a, resolution (Rs) and relative standard deviation (RSD) of peak height or peak area for respective injections. The RSD of peak height or area of five injections of standard solution is normally accepted as one of the standard criteria. For an assay method of a major component, the RSD should typically be less than 1% for these five respective injections. The plate number and / or tailing factor are used if the run contains only one peak. For chromatographic separations with more than one peak, such as an internal standard assay or an impurity method, expected to contain many peaks, some measure of separations such as Rs is recommended. Reproducibility of tR or k value for a specific compound also defines system performance. The column performance can be defined in terms of column plate number ‘N’ is defined by N = 5.54 (tR / W ½)2 Where ‘tR’ is the retention time of the peak and ‘W ½Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ is the width of the peak at half peak height. The resolution of two adjacent peaks can be calculated by using the formula Rs = 1.18 (t2-t1) / W0.5.1 +W0.5.2 Where ‘t1’ and ‘t2’ are retention times of the adjacent peaks and W0.5.1 and W0.5.2 are the width of the peaks at half height. Rs = 2.0 or greater is a desirable target for method development. The retention factor k is given by the equation. k = (tR – t0) / t0 where ‘tR’ is the band retention time and t0 is the column dead time. The peak symmetry can be represented in terms of peak asymmetry factor and peak tailing factor, which can be calculated by using the following formula. Peak asymmetry factor = B /A Where ‘B’ is the distance at 50% peak height between leading edge to the perpendicular drawn from the peak maxima and ‘A’ is the width of the peak at half height. According to USP (2000) peak tailing factor can be calculated by using the formula T = W0.05 / 2f Where â€Å"W0.05† is the width of the peak at 5% height and â€Å"f† is the distance from the peak maximum to the leading edge of the peak, the distance being measured at a point 50% of the peak height from the base line. High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) 214 High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) 214 Introduction High performance liquid chromatography 214 is the most widely used of all of the analytical separation techniques. The reasons for the popularity of the method is its sensitivity, ready adaptability to accurate quantitative determinations, suitability for separating non-volatile species or thermally fragile ones, wide spread applicability to substance that are of prime interest to industry, many fields of science and the public. The applications of chromatography have grown explosively in the last fifty years owing not only to the development of several new types of chromatographic techniques but also to the growing need by scientist for better methods for characterizing complex mixtures. General methodology for the development of new HPLC methods 215-228 HPLC method development follows the series of steps summarized below. Information on sample, objective of separation. Need for special HPLC procedure, sample pretreatment etc. Choice of detector and detector settings. Choosing LC method, preliminary run, estimation of best separation conditions. Optimization of separation conditions. Check for problems or requirement for special procedure. a) Recovery of purified material   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   b) Quantitative calibration  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   c) Qualitative method Validate method for routine laboratory use. A good method development strategy should require only as many experimental runs as are necessary to achieve the desired final result. Finally, method development should be simple as possible, yet it should allow the use of sophisticated tools such as computer modeling if these are available. Before the beginning of method development, it is necessary to review what is known about the sample in order to define the goals of separation. The kinds of sample related information that can be important are summarized in Table-7.1. Table-8.1 Important information concerning sample composition and properties Number   of compounds present in the sample Chemical structures of components Molecular weights of compounds PKa values of compounds UV spectra of compounds Concentration range of various compounds in samples of interest Sample solubility   Ã‚   The chemical composition of the sample can provide valuable clues for the best choice of initial conditions for an HPLC separation. Objectives of separation The objectives of HPLC separation need to be specified clearly include. The use of HPLC to isolate purified sample components for spectral identification or quantitative analysis. It may be necessary to separate all degradants or impurities from a product for reliable content assay. In quantitative analysis, the required levels of accuracy and precision should be known (a precision of  ± 1 to 2% is usually achievable). Whether a single HPLC procedure is sufficient for raw material or one or more formulations and / or different procedures are desired for the analysis of formulations? When the number of samples for analysis at one time is greater than 10, a run time of less than 20 min. will be oftenly important. Knowledge on the desired HPLC equipment, experience and academic training the operators have. Sample pretreatment and detection Samples for analysis come in various forms such as: Solutions ready for injections. Solutions that require dilution, buffering, addition of an internal standard or other volumetric manipulation. Solids that must first be dissolved or extracted. Samples that require pretreatment to remove interference and/or protect the column or equipment from damage. Most samples for HPLC analysis require weighing and / or volumetric dilution before injection. Best results are often obtained when the composition of the sample solvent is close to that of the mobile phase since this minimizes baseline upset and other problems. Some samples require a partial separation ( pretreatment) prior to HPLC, because of need to remove interference, concentrate sample analytes or eliminate â€Å"column killer†. In many cases the development of an adequate sample pretreatment can be challenging than achieving a good HPLC separation. The detector selected should sense all sample components of interest. Variable-wavelength ultraviolet (UV) detectors normally are the first choice, because of their convenience and applicability for most samples. For this reason information on the UV spectra can be an important aid for method development. When the UV response of the sample is inadequate, other detectors are available (flourescence, electrochemical, PDA etc.) or the sample can be derivatized for enhanced detection. Developing the method for the separation Selecting an HPLC method and initial conditions If HPLC is chosen for the separation, the next step is to classify the sample as regular or special. Regular samples means typical mixtures of small molecules (    Table-8.2 Handling of special sample Sample Requirements Inorganic ions Detection is primary problems; use ion chromatography Isomers Some isomers can be separated by reversed-phase HPLC and are then classified as regular samples; better separations of isomers are obtainable using either (1) normal-phase HPLC or (2) reversed-phase separations with cyclodextrin-silica columns. Enantiomers These compounds require â€Å"chiral† conditions for their separations. Biological Several factors make samples or this kind â€Å"special†; molecular conformation, polar functionality and a wide range of hydrophobicity. Macromolecules â€Å"Big† molecules require column packing with large pores  Ã‚  (>> 10-nm diameters); in addition, biological molecules require special conditions as noted above. Table-8.3 Preferred experimental conditions for the initial HPLC separation Separation variable Preferred initial choice Column Dimensions (length, ID) 15 x 0.46 cm Particle size 5 mma Stationary phase C8 or C18 Mobile phase Solvent A and B Buffer-acetonitrile % B 80-100%b Buffer (compound, pH, concentration) 25mM potassium phosphate 2.0 Additives (e.g., amine modifiers, ion pair reagents) Do not use initially Flow rate 1.5–2.0 ml/min Temperature 35-45 ºC Sample Size Volumed >25 mL Weightd B : Polar solvent  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   a 3.5 mm particles are an alternative using a 7.5 cm column b For an initial isocratic run; an initial gradient run is preferred. c No buffer required for neutral samples; for pH d Smaller values required for smaller-volume columns (e.g., 7.50.46-cm, 3.5-mm column). Table-8.4 Physical properties of silica supports for some C 18 columns Column (mL/mL) Pore diameter (nm) Surface area (m2/g) Percent Porosity Hypersil ODS 12 170 57 LiChrosorb C18 10 355 71 Novapak C18 6 N/Aa N/Aa Nucleosil C18 10 350 69` Symmetry C18 10 335 66 Zorbax ODS 6 300 55 Zorbax Rx, SB, XDB 8 180 50 a N/A : Not available On the basis of the initial exploratory run isocratic or gradient elution can be selected as most suitable. If typical reversed-phase conditions provide insufficient sample retention, suggesting the use of either ion pair on normal phase HPLC. Alternatively, the sample may be strongly retained with 100% acetonitrile as mobile phase, suggesting the use of non-aqueous reversed-phase (NARP) chromatography or normal phase HPLC. Some characteristics of reversed-phase and other HPLC methods are summarized below. Table-8.5 Characteristics of primary HPLC methods Method / description/ columns Preferred method Reversed-phase HPLC Uses water – organic mobile phase Columns: C18 (ODS), C8, phenyl, trimethylsilyl (TMS), Cyano First choice for most samples, especially neutral or non-ionisable compounds that dissolve in water-organic mixtures Ion-pair HPLC Uses water-organic mobile phase a buffer to control pH and an ion pair reagent. Column : C18, C8, cyano. Acceptable choice for ionic or ionizable compounds, especially bases or cations. Normal phase HPLC Uses mixtures of organic solvents as mobile phase Columns: Cyano, diol, amino and silica. Good second choice when reversed-phase or ion-pair HPLC is ineffective, first choice for lipophilic samples that do not dissolve well in water-organic mixtures, first choice for mixtures of isomers and for preparative-scale HPLC (silica best) Getting started on method development One approach is to use an isocratic mobile phase of some average solvent strength (e.g., 50%) organic solvent. A better alternative is to use a very strong mobile phase with (80-100% B), then reduce %B as necessary. The initial separation with 100%B results in rapid elution of the entire sample, but few groups will separate. Decreasing solvent strength shows the rapid separation of all components with a much longer run time, with a broadening of later bands and reduced detection sensitivity. Improving the separation and repeatable separation Generally the chromatographers will consider several aspects of the separation, as summarized in Table-8.6. Table-8.6 Objectives of separation in HPLC method development Objectivesa Comment Resolution Precise and rugged quantitative analysis requires that Rs be greater than 1.5. Separation time Quantitation   Ã‚ £ 2% (1 SD) for assays;  £ 5% for less-demanding analysis;  £15% for trace analysis. Pressure Peak height Narrow peaks are desirable for large signal / noise ratios Solvent consumption   Minimum mobile-phase use per run is desirable. a Roughly in order of decreasing importance but may vary with analysis requirements. Separation or resolution is a primary requirement in quantitative HPLC. The resolution (Rs) value should be maximum (Rs>1.5) favours maximum precision. Resolution usually degrades during the life of the column and can vary from day to day with minor fluctuations in separation conditions. Therefore, values of Rs = 2 or greater should be the goal during method development for simple mixtures. Such resolution will favour both improved assay precision and greater method ruggedness. Some HPLC assays do not require base line separation of the compounds of interest (qualitative analysis). In such cases only enough separation of individual components is required to provide characteristic retention times for peak identification. The time required for a separation (run time = retention time for base band) should be as short as possible and the total time spent on method development is reasonable (runtimes 5 to 10 minutes are desirable). Conditions for the final HPLC method should be selected so that the operating pressure with a new column does not exceed 170 bar (2500 psi) and upper pressure limit below 2000 psi is desirable. There are two reasons for that pressure limit, despite the fact that most HPLC equipment can be operated at much higher pressures. First, during the life of a column, the back pressure may rise by a factor of as much as 2 due to the gradual plugging of the column by particular matter. Second, at lower pressures When dealing with more challenging samples or if the goals of separation are particularly stringent, a large number of method development runs may be required to achieve acceptable separation. Repeatable separation As the experimental runs described above are being carried out, it is important to confirm that each chromatogram can be repeated. When changing conditions (mobile phase, column, and temperature) between method development experiments, enough time must elapse for the column to come into equilibrium with a new mobile phase and temperature. Usually column equilibration is achieved after passage of 10 to 20 column volumes of the new mobile phase through the column. However, this should be confirmed by carrying out a repeat experiment under the same conditions. When constant retention times are observed in two such back-to-back repeat experiments ( ± 0.5% or better), it can be assumed that the column is equilibrated and the experiments are repeatable. Completing the HPLC method development The final procedure should meet all the objectives that were defined at the beginning of method development. The method should also be robust in routine operation and usable by all laboratories and personnel for which it is intended. Quantitation and method validation One of the strengths of HPLC is that is an excellent quantitative analytical technique. HPLC can be used for the quantitation of the primary or major component of a sample (including pure samples) for mixture of many compounds at intermediate concentrations and for the assessment of trace impurity concentrations in matrix. Method validation, according to the United States Pharmacopoeia (USP), is performed to ensure that an analytical methodology is accurate, specific, reproducible and rugged over the specified range that an analyte will be analysed. Method validation provides an assurance of reliability during normal use and is sometimes described as the process of providing documented evidence that the method does what it is intended to do. According to USP, the method validation involves eight steps as given below. Precision Accuracy Limit of detection Limit of quantitation Specificity Linearity and range Ruggedness Robustness Precision and accuracy: Already discussed in chapter-1. Linearity The linearity of the method is a measure of how well a calibration plot of response v/s concentration approximates a straight line, or how well the data fit to the linear equation. Y = aX + b Where ‘Y’ is the response, ‘X’ is the concentration, ‘a’ is the slope and ‘b’ is the intercept of a line fit to the data. Ideally, a linear relationship is preferred (b = 0) because it is more precise, easier for calculations and can be defined with fewer standards. Also, UV detector response for a dilute sample is expected to follow Beer’s law and be linear. Therefore, a linear calibration gives evidence that the system is performing properly throughout the concentration range of interest. Generally in HPLC, if we are using internal standard, then the linearity plot is to be drawn by taking concentration of the analyte on x-axis and the ratio of area under the curve (AUC) of analyte to AUC of internal standard (IS) on y-axis. The resulting plot slope, intercept and correlation coefficient provide the desired information on linearity. A linearity correlation coefficient above 0.999 is acceptable for most methods. Limit of detection (LOD) The limit of detection (LOD) is the smallest concentration that can be detected reliably. The LOD represents the concentration of analyte that would yield a signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio of 3. Limit of quantitation (LOQ) The LOQ is the concentration that can be quantitated reliably with a specified level of accuracy and precision. The LOQ represents the concentration of analyte that would yield a signal-to-noise ratio of 10. LOD and LOQ can be determined by using the following expressions. LOD  Ã‚  Ã‚   =  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   3 X N / B LOQ  Ã‚  Ã‚   =  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   10 X N / B Where N is the noise estimate, is the standard deviation of the peak area ratio of analyte to IS (5 injections) of the drugs. B is the slope of the corresponding calibration curve. The LOD and LOQ values determined during method validation are affected by the separation conditions, columns, reagents and especially instrumentation and data systems. Ruggedness Method ruggedness is defined as the reproducibility of results when the method is performed under actual use conditions. This includes different analysts, laboratories, columns, instruments, sources, chemicals, solvents etc. method ruggedness may not be known when a method is first developed, but insight is obtained during subsequent use of that method. Robustness The concept of robustness of an analytical procedure has been defined by the ICH as â€Å" a measure of its capacity to remain unaffected by small, but deliberate variations in method parameters†. The robustness of a method is the ability to remain unaffected by small changes in parameters such as pH of the mobile phase, temperature, percentage of organic solvent and buffer concentration etc. to determine robustness of the method experimental conditions were purposely altered and chromatographic characteristics were evaluated. To study the pH effect on the retention (K1) of the drug, buffer pH is to be changed by 0.2 units. At certain point, retention will increase at any pH above and below of the pH unit. The effect of temperature on the retention characteristics (K1) of the drug is to be studied by changing the temperature in steps 2 ºC from room temperature to 80 ºC and see the effect of temperature on the resolution and peak shape. Effect of percentage organic strength on retention is to be studied by varying the percentage of organic solvents like acetonitrile, methanol etc. from 0 to 2% while the other mobile phase contents are held constant and observe the K1. At certain point decreases in K1 observed with increase in the level of organic solvent. Effect of buffer concentration should be checked at three concentration levels i.e. 0.025 M, 0.05 M and 0.1 M and observe retention time and resolution. Stability To generate reproducible and reliable results, the samples, standards and reagents used for the HPLC method must be stable for a reasonable time (e.g., One day, one week, one month, depending on the need). For example, the analysis of even a single sample may require 10 or more chromatographic runs to determine system suitability, including standard concentrations to create a working analytical curve and duplicate or triplicate injections of the sample to be assayed. Therefore, a few hours of standard and sample solution stability can be required even for a short (10 min.) separation. When more than one sample is analyzed, automated, over night runs often are performed for better laboratory efficiency. Typically, 24 hours stability is desired for all solutions and reagents that need to be prepared for each analysis. Mobile phases should be chosen to avoid stability problems, especially the use of amine additives or specific solvents. For example, mobile phase containing THF (tetra hydrofuran) are known to be susceptible to oxidation, therefore, the mobile phase should be prepared daily with fresh THF. Some buffered mobile phases cause problems for example, phosphate and acetate provide good media for microbial growth. Sodium oxide (0.1%) is often added to the mobile phase buffer to inhibit such growth, adding more than 5% of organic solvent is also effective. Long term column stability is critical for method ruggedness. Even the best HPLC column will eventually degrade and lose its initial performance, often as a function of the number of samples injected. System suitability System suitability experiments can be defined as tests to ensure that the method can generate results of acceptable accuracy and precision. The requirements for system suitability are usually developed after method development and validation have been completed. The criteria selected will be based on the actual performance of the method as determined during its validation. For example, if sample retention times forms part of the system suitability criteria, their variation (SD) during validation can be determined, system suitability might then require that retention times fall within a  ±3 SD range during routine performance of the method. The USP (2000) defines parameters that can be used to determine system suitability prior to analysis. These parameters include plate number (N), tailing factor, k and / or a, resolution (Rs) and relative standard deviation (RSD) of peak height or peak area for respective injections. The RSD of peak height or area of five injections of standard solution is normally accepted as one of the standard criteria. For an assay method of a major component, the RSD should typically be less than 1% for these five respective injections. The plate number and / or tailing factor are used if the run contains only one peak. For chromatographic separations with more than one peak, such as an internal standard assay or an impurity method, expected to contain many peaks, some measure of separations such as Rs is recommended. Reproducibility of tR or k value for a specific compound also defines system performance. The column performance can be defined in terms of column plate number ‘N’ is defined by N = 5.54 (tR / W ½)2 Where ‘tR’ is the retention time of the peak and ‘W ½Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ is the width of the peak at half peak height. The resolution of two adjacent peaks can be calculated by using the formula Rs = 1.18 (t2-t1) / W0.5.1 +W0.5.2 Where ‘t1’ and ‘t2’ are retention times of the adjacent peaks and W0.5.1 and W0.5.2 are the width of the peaks at half height. Rs = 2.0 or greater is a desirable target for method development. The retention factor k is given by the equation. k = (tR – t0) / t0 where ‘tR’ is the band retention time and t0 is the column dead time. The peak symmetry can be represented in terms of peak asymmetry factor and peak tailing factor, which can be calculated by using the following formula. Peak asymmetry factor = B /A Where ‘B’ is the distance at 50% peak height between leading edge to the perpendicular drawn from the peak maxima and ‘A’ is the width of the peak at half height. According to USP (2000) peak tailing factor can be calculated by using the formula T = W0.05 / 2f Where â€Å"W0.05† is the width of the peak at 5% height and â€Å"f† is the distance from the peak maximum to the leading edge of the peak, the distance being measured at a point 50% of the peak height from the base line.