Loewen Case

This growth through acquisitions was funded primarily through debt which was evident as long term debt increased $922. Lion from 1994 to 1998; this was a 195. 88% increase. One benefit of debt financing was that it provided a tax benefit. From 1994 to 1998 Lone had paid $488. 6 million in interest. Lowness tax rate was 45% therefore; debt financing resulted in a tax savings of $219. 87 million. Another advantage of debt financing was that It did not afford the lender ownership. Therefore, the lender had no say In how one's business was conducted. In order for one to reap the benefits of debt financing though one must be able to comply with all aspects of the debt agreement.When unable to do so the consequences can be devastating too equines. Unfortunately, aggressive growth through debt financing did not bode well with the Lone Group. With the 30% average revenue growth one would expect to see their earnings grow too, but this was not the case. Lone lost $599 million for 1998 compare d to earning $43 million the previous year, an approximate 149% decline in one year. Within 5 years of the start of their â€Å"acquisition frenzy† of larger established funeral chains they were facing what one in the financial world would call â€Å"financial distress†.Financial distress is defined by Investigated as â€Å"A condition where a many cannot meet or has difficulty paying off its financial obligations to its creditors. The chance of financial distress increases when a firm has high fixed costs, illiquid assets, or revenues that are sensitive to economic downturns. † Lone Group unfortunately had a few of the above Issues and then some. Fixed costs for funeral homes were approximately 65%; this was due In part to the fact that a funeral home may only have one to two funerals a week but still had to be maintained.Their competitor, SIC, would â€Å"cluster† the funeral homes together which reduced fixed costs to an average of 54%. 4% is still hig h but better than 65%. Such a plan also afforded SIC the ability to sell off assets, eliminating redundant cost and reducing the total cost of the acquisition. Funeral home assets were not in great demand at this time as the death rate had declined; therefore funeral home assets were very illiquid. Though the above financial distress pre-cursors were in place, internal issues also played a large role in creating Lowness financial distress.Lowness aggressive acquisition strategy seemed only to focus on the acquisition with little to no thought to the next step of the process. Lowness competitor, SIC, acquired full ownership of all acquisitions whereas Lone took a majority ownership and made payments for the rest to help ease taxes. These calculations were funded largely with debt in which the terms of such debt were very complicated Succession with Blackstone Group. If Lone bought out Blackstone by exercising their option it would effectively pay an amount that would give Blackstone a 24% return on its investment.Lenses' ROAR (using actual assets as bag assets were not given) in 1996 was only 1. 83%. This was an extremely high return to negotiate. Blackstone also had a put in which they could sell their stock to Lone using a calculation based on EBITDA. This definitely did not favor Lone due to most acquisitions were purchased largely through debt. Lone did not market the acquisitions instead decided the funds would be better spent on courting independent funeral home and cemetery owners who were potential acquirers. Though they did not market their acquisitions their SO &A increased by 25. 3% to $125. 2 million from 1997 to 1998 whereas their competitor's SO remained constant at $66. 8 million. Marketing and integrating acquisitions into one's business are a ere important part of the success of an acquisition. A reversal of $3. 7 million in sales plus a $2. 1 million increase in allowance for loan losses were attributed to the decrease in gross margin. Such an increase in allowance for loan losses would lead one to believe that due diligence in evaluating the collegiality of the accounts receivable of the acquired companies had not been performed.The $5. 7 million adjustment resulted in a 9. 07% decrease in income for 1996. A lawsuit awarded in the amount of $500 million occurred from accusations of Lone reneging on the purchase of two homes, plus certain insurance services. Lone reported an expense of $165 million for the year to settle this and other lawsuits. Had Lone honored the agreement the properties were only worth a few million therefore, it would have saved them a considerable amount of money. Also, after the announcement of the award Lowness stock decreased in value by 15%.In 1996, an offer to purchase Lone stock was made by SIC in which they offered to purchase the stock at $43 per share which was $3. 00 per share higher than it was trading for at that time. SIC increased their offer to $45 per share yet Lowness Board of Dire ctors effused the offer stating the stock was undervalued due to the lawsuit. At the end of 1996, Lowness debt/equity ratio was 1. 4:1; company policy was in the range of 1 to 1. 5. Lowness plan was to reduce the debt/equity ratio with equity issues.Due to concerns over an antitrust lawsuit Lone had filed against SIC and Lowness current high debt to equity ratio SIC withdrew their offer to Lone. This leads us to the Board of Directors who are appointed to act on behalf of the shareholders to run the day to day affairs of the business along with ensuring the availability of adequate uncial resources, evaluating the CEO and approving the budget. One can see from the description of the responsibilities of the Board of Directors that Lowness Board of Directors had greatly failed their shareholders.Lone, now facing financial distress, as they had not yet missed a payment but had $875 million in debt due the next year, had to determine how best to recover from too much debt, too little de ath and too little governance. John Lackey, the newly appointed CEO, was to begin his daunting task of bringing Lone back from the brink of death. With $875 million in debt due in 1999 Mr.. Lackey had little time to develop a plan of action. Unfortunately, Lowness original plan of reducing debt by issuing equities was no longer an option as the stock price year; a decrease of 67. 2%. Lone should have given this option consideration earlier and they might not have found themselves in this position. Mr.. Lackeys options all had pros and cons but a decision had to be made and made fast. Option one would be to meet with creditors regarding the soon to be due debt obligations and discuss amending the terms, a workout. Most creditors cringe at the word bankruptcy so that may help to earn the ear of their creditors. Prior to approaching the bank or their creditors, Lone must first determine whether there is any way to turn the business around.Creditors are normally repaid by future cash fl ow, new financing, or equity infusion. Lone must first devise a restructuring plan that would demonstrate it can be sustainable on a going forward basis. Mr.. Lackey must review the historical financial of the business and prepare projections of cash flow, profit and loss, and balance sheet through the term of the proposed repayment plan. The projections should demonstrate that the business not only has sufficient ash flow to maintain current operations but also has enough additional cash flow in the foreseeable future that will enable creditors to receive a return on the delinquent debt.The amount of such additional positive cash flow will determine the amount of time necessary to repay creditors. The pros of this option would be that it would be less expensive than bankruptcy. Bankruptcy would require attorneys, court costs and other expenses. Costs that would have been spent on bankruptcy can be used in restructuring the business. It would also give Lone the opportunity to addres s the tuition privately between the creditors and themselves. This would hopefully help to minimize negative publicity. The cost of negative publicity knows no bounds.This option would also buy Lone some time in which to begin the process of possibly selling off less profitable operations and time to evaluate expenses and cut the fat. A workout is also effective in preventing creditors from taking legal action which again would buy Lone some time. The cons of this option would be the terms of Lowness's debt were very complicated in that the company's debt was almost all secured, or collateralized by various assets. There were also covenants that restricted the company's ability to sell assets.Creditors would have to all agree to the terms of the sale of assets. Lone had a covenant in their bonds that stated if the ownership of the company's stock changed significantly Lone had to repurchase the bonds for 101% of face value. The scofflaws may not be sufficient to show the company sus tainable enough going forward for the creditors. All of these covenants and restrictions would make it difficult to restructure the company's debt. Option 2 would be to recommend Lone meet with a professional in the equines of securing equity investors for troubled companies.Pros would be though it may be costly it would still be cheaper than bankruptcy and may be the only option for Lone to continue its operation should no agreement be reached with its current creditors. Cons of course would be the cost. With Lowness current situation equity investors would be hard to come by also. Option three would be to meet with their three main competitors to discuss each entity purchasing some of the acquired funeral homes and cemeteries. This option would allow Lone to sell their assets for cash. Avoid bankruptcy and the additional sots associated with bankruptcy.Big is not always better. Lone could then focus option would possible be the anti-trust laws. If the sale of assets to Lowness thr ee main competitors was seen as threatening fair competition then the sale could not take place. Another con is again the terms of Lowness debt would make this a difficult task. Option four would be the last resort, Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The con of this option is that it would give Lone the ability to develop a plan to restructure on their terms. Lone would no longer be required to pay interest on unsecured debt.They would also be able to borrow from new lenders through debtor-in-possession financing. A con of this plan would be the costs incurred to file bankruptcy. Another issue is the company conducted about 10% of its business in Canada where the bankruptcy law made it much simpler for creditors to remove management. Canadian law also only provided one chance to provide a reorganization plan. In conclusion our recommendation would be to develop a reorganization plan showing the company was a sustainable company going forward, positive cash flow would provide payment on delinque nt debt and then present it to its creditors for approval.

Lifestyle Overview Essay

The term was originally used by Austrian psychologist  Alfred Adler  (1870-1937). The term was introduced in the 1950s as a derivative of that of  style  in  modernist art. The term refers to a combination of determining intangible or tangible factors. Tangible factors relate specifically to  demographic variables, i. an individuals demographic profile, whereas intangible factors concern the psychological aspects of an individual such personal values, preferences, and outlooks. (4sk content) Peoples‘ lifestyles are affected by different factors, such as Individual Identity, Health, Environment and Technology. (5sk Individual identity) A lifestyle typically reflects an individual’s attitudes, values or  world view. Therefore, a lifestyle is a means of forging a sense of  self  and to create cultural  symbols  that resonate with personal identity. Not all aspects of a lifestyle are voluntary. Surrounding social and technical systems can constrain the lifestyle choices available to the individual and the symbols she/he is able to project to others and the self. The lines between personal identity and the everyday doings that signal a particular lifestyle become blurred in modern society. For example, â€Å"green lifestyle† means holding beliefs and engaging in activities that consume fewer resources and produce less harmful waste (i. e. smaller  carbon footprint), and deriving a sense of self from holding these beliefs and engaging in these activities. Some commentators  argue that, in  modernity, the cornerstone of lifestyle construction is consumption behavior, which offers the possibility to create and further individualize the self with different products or services that signal different ways of life. Lifestyle may include views on politics, religion, health, intimacy, and more. All of these aspects play a rol e in shaping someone’s lifestyle. In the  magazine  and  television  industries, â€Å"lifestyle† is used to describe a category of publications or programs. (6sk Health) An individual’s health depends a lot on their lifestyle. Maintaining physical and mental health are crucial to an individuals longevity. The more time spent on hygiene, physical fitness, and diet regulation, the healthier lifestyle they have. Those who chose to participate in any kind of physical activity on a weekly basis are generally healthier than those who don’t. Mental illness may occur through various variables. For example, depression may promote mental illness through stress and anxiety. Reasons for being depressed can be due to a number of things including job loss, recently widowed, divorce, etc. Depression may lead to or increase the frequency of poor habits not promoting physical health. Poor habits may eventually lead to a poor even dangerous lifestyle. More interestingly, a healthy or unhealthy lifestyle will most likely to be transmitted across generations. According to the study done by Case et. l (2002), it discovered that when a 0-3 year old child has a mother who practices a healthy lifestyle, this child will be 27% more likely to become healthy and adopt the same lifestyle. For instance, high income parents are more likely to eat organic food, have time to exercise and provide the best living condition to their children. On the other hand, low income parents are more likely to participate in unhealthy activities such as smoking to help them release poverty-related stress and de pression. Parents are the first teacher for every child. Everything that parents do will be very like to be transferred to their children through the learning process. (7sk environment) There are two types of environment for a lifestyle: nature and social. Natural environment is the conditions in which a person, animal, or plant lives or operates. an individual dedicated to this prefers to walk to close places, recycles plastic, papers, cants, etc. In an individuals lifestyle some of this natural environment is needed, fresh air, clean water, clean home, clean neighbourhood and a clean example for those at home. Those who are nature involved decide to plant flowers, vegetables and other crops in their backyard and are extremely strict on how to organize their household waste and uses positive and proactive ways to environmental sustainability. Social environment is totally different. Social Environment includes an individuals living and working conditions, income level, educational background, community and religious beliefs if they have any. In a social environment there are certain expectations from one self or from those around. expectations like success and wanting the best. Along with  success  come a lot of stress. If there is failure, then there may be mood swings and disappointment. In order for this not to happen, there are better ways to avoid disappointment and failure; organization and structure is the main key element. (8sk technology) Technology and diversity have greatly changed the lives of people in society. Technology has positive and negative effects on our daily lives. However, the positivity and negativity of technology depends on how much we use it and how much we are exposed to it. In other words, our lifestyle controls our use of technology, while technology influences our lifestyles. To begin, technology has changed the fields of agriculture, manufacturing, warfare, transportation, information, medicine, communication, among others. Technology has also made it easier for other factors to affect our lifestyles, such as the media. All in all, technology has made our lives much easier, therefore we no longer are required to live vigorous lifestyles that, in the past, contributed to the decline in our health. On the other hand, technology has complicated many lives and has many negative effects. Technology has the power to deliver media to us that can change our values and views on the world, which in return will change our lifestyles. Also, technology has negative effects on the environment such as pollution. Because of technology such as the computer and the television, Americans have a much more  sedentary lifestyle, which leads to health complications and issues.

Atwood presents women in the novel? Essay

   Atwood includes in the novel Offred as a young child watching her mother burning pornographic magazines because she wants her readers to question how far the women in the society at the time the novel was set involved in creating the Gilead regime; feminists takes part in activities such as campaigning against pornographic materials and disrupting beauty contests because they believe that they are degrading to women, Atwood is saying that by protesting against such, they are agreeing that censorship should be brought in and that women should be ‘protected’ from such material; at the heart of the Gilead regime is the ‘protection women’. Margaret Atwood is challenging militant feminists to decide at what cost are they ready to pay in order create the matriarchal society they are campaigning for. Also Atwood is warning the readers that the notion of the need ‘protect women’ can be dangerous; it could slip from a demand for more freedom to a kind of neo-Victorianism, after all it was the need to ‘protect women’ that justified all manners of women subordination in the 19th Century including confining women to the kitchen and barring them from voting. Before writing this novel, Atwood collected newspaper clippings and reporting events from the feminist movement, religious right-wing groups and various cultural practices around the world so, this tangled debate could also be referring to the views contemporary Islamic women who argues that the veil and the all-enveloping clothing is aimed at dealing with sexual harassment and sexual objectification. By including this in the novel, Margaret Atwood is warning her reader to be careful of such promises; the language is feminist, but the results could be deeply patriarchal-as it is in the book. Throughout, Atwood presents different types of women and their different responses to the patriarchal regime of Gilead, two of which are Janine and Moira. Moira is flamboyantly unconventional and possesses unshakeable self-assurance, refusing to subscribe to the ideologies of Gilead by her subversive attitude to life. Atwood presents Moira as a symbol of hope for Offred. Like Offred, her function in Gilead is to conceive, but she does not let this bother her as she sees herself escaping Gilead one day, in fact it is this determination that helps her escape the mental madness. Moira in the novel is also portrayed as an asset to the other handmaids in the Red Centre because her seditious humour is used as a weapon against the tyranny of the Aunts. The author also presents Moira as the voice of reason e. g. in chapter 28, Offred tells of how critical Moira was when she found out that Offred was involved in an extra-marital affair with Luke â€Å"she disapprove back then. Not of Luke but the fact that he was married†. As mentioned before, feminism is not a uniform body of thought hence different feminists have different feminist beliefs; Margaret Atwood is using the character of Moira to show the readers the other strands of feminism. Moira is a lesbian and like Offred’s mother, she is also a politically aware feminist and conscious of her right as women but unlike Offred’s mother, she does not have to go to extreme lengths to fight for equality; Moira’s idea of feminism is being assertive as a women and being loyal to other women (hence she accuses Offred of â€Å"stealing† Luke) Moira’s reluctance to conform to rules of Gilead is crucial to her mental stability and her survival. Margaret Atwood contrast Moira’s reluctance to subscribe to the ideologies of Gilead with Janine, who deeply believes and accepts the Gilead regime. Janine is both a victim of freedom and oppression. In the novel, we told that as a handmaid, she was left to wound her own emotional scares when her baby was declared ‘unborn’ and destroyed because it was deformed and also that before the Gilead regime she was gang-raped something she is made to believe by the Aunts that it is her fault â€Å"her fault, her fault, we chant in unison†. There are great parallels between these events; in each case, she is a powerless individual, victimised as a women and her baby is destroyed. Janine’s fragility reinforces Moira’s inner strength. Janine’s drift into madness in chapter 43 serves as Atwood’s way of telling the readers that people can not be forced into believing in something imposed on them and that true converts of the Gilead regime are eventually into driven insane by the system’s inhumane practices. Page 1 of 3 Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Margaret Atwood section.

Andragogy Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Andragogy - Research Paper Example The seven steps to creating a learning planning for adults is called the progress model which means that solving problems is the focus of how learning is accomplished. The following paper will examine the assumptions that define andragogy and the meaning behind them as they support adult learning and the differences between adult and child level learning capacities. The origins of andragogy can be traced back to a German educator in 1833 who used the term to define adult education from child education. Alexander Kapp created the term which specifically means man-leading, which is in contrast to the term pedagogy which means child-leading. In the 20th century American education theorists defined three different types of adult learning. The first is andragogy, the second is self directed learning, with the third being transformative. Andragogy is used as a description of adult learning as a concept in which the learner is motivated by a series of assumptions that end with the learner developing solution to problems in order to learn in the context that an adult learns best (Melik & Melik, 2010, p. 108). Defining andragogy is a bit difficult as it has been presented through a variety of different ideas and is therefore not quite a firm theory through which to filter ideas. Andragogy was originally presented with three assumptions. Some criticisms of the ideas behind andragogy is that it is focused on the individual and not a critical evaluation of the social perspective on adult learning. The concept of andragogy has been correctly criticized for not informing the social perspective, but Knowles suggests that it does not have to promote the social perspective in order to have value in developing a structure of ideas about adult learning. One of the main proponents of andragogy as a theory of learning for adults is Malcolm Knowles. Knowles introduced the idea in the 1970s in response to the fact that most theory on learning was focused on

Article Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Article Analysis - Essay Example The research question was answered by conducting a research study using tactile prompt and self-monitoring interventions to third and fifth graders with severe behavioural problems who were diagnosed with either emotional handicap, language impairment, Asperger syndrome, and educable mentally handicap who need a strong behavioural support. While managing the group of students, the behaviours of three instructional assistants were recorded. Upon applying the treatment package which includes the prompting, self-monitoring and accuracy feedback to the 1st dependent variable – managing disruptions. As soon as student response was sable, the prompting component of intervention was removed from the study observation. Eventually, Fisher (2006) compared the results with the baseline wherein the data was gathered under normal classroom condition prior to the research interventions. applied to the 2nd dependent variable – bonus-point delivery. As soon as the bonus-point delivery was consistent to the main goal of the study, the prompting component was removed followed by applying the final response known as ‘prompting appropriate behavior’. Although very little to no improvements was noticed during the first training session in the case of Fran, Kelly, and Nicole. Although the application of self-monitoring and accuracy feedback methods was not enough to maintain Nicole and Kelly’s behaviour change during the bonus-point delivery, the research findings revealed the application of the treatment package which includes the prompting, self-monitoring and accuracy feedback is effective in terms of increasing the levels of managing the students’ disruptive behaviour in class, prompting appropriate student behaviour, and bonus-point delivery from close to zero to a consistently high rates. In line with this, the use of vibrating pagers should be removed since the presence of wearing the pager could significantly affect the

Field Research Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Field Research - Essay Example There is no denying the fact that a majority of the top models were affiliated to a few select brands like HTC, Samsung, Apple, Nokia and Blackberry. The Smartphone available at this store evinced a range of features and applications. The Samsung Galaxy S4 happened to be a really top end phone that offered varied flexible possibilities like the option to use microSD to expand the phone memory. This model was virtually an Android powerhouse. The phone came with an eye tracking and Smart Scroll feature that allows scrolling while looking at the screen while keeping the phone a little tilted. There is a smart pause features that pauses the video being played if the user is not looking at the screen. The Air View feature allows implementing advanced functionality by holding or swiping a finger or a hand slightly over the phone. Group Play feature allows for an ad hoc sharing of files between Galaxy phones as is the case in multiplayer games and also facilitates music streaming specifical ly in Galaxy S4 phones. Truly speaking this phone came with a range of advanced features. Apple iPhone 5 also happened to be a top class phone that promised multiple advanced features. ... With its advanced wireless technology, Apple iPhone 5 connects to more networks around the world. The speed is remarkable that allows for a hassle free browsing, streaming and sharing. The phone comes with the new A6 chip that is very powerful, without taxing the battery anymore. HTC One happened to be a Smartphone that came with a range of features not available in other Smartphone. It came with a 4MP UltraPixel Camera that happened to be the best in its class. HTC One runs on Android 4.1 (jellybean) however its user interface is way apart from the regular Android user interfaces. This model has done away with the standard Android hardware button layout and the device could be readily navigated with the help of only two keys. The BlinkFeed feature is really unique as it indeed boosts content sharing, and social media integration. The phone comes with two powerful frontal speakers. The phone comes equipped with an infrared based blaster that allows it to act as an extension to the us ers’ TV. The price of the Smartphone available at this retail outlet varied from as low as $97 for the Blackberry Bold 9650 (without contract) to as high as $605 for Galaxy S4 (without contract). No wonder the price variation in the market for Smartphone is high and a consumer really gets confused as to the brand one can chose. The special thing that was noticed in case of most of the Smartphone models was that packaging and display evinced a hallmark of marketing astuteness. In most of the models the packaging happened to be sleek and was mostly intended to enhance the aesthetic appeal and to allow for easy display and stacking in the stores. In terms of the packaging, most of the brands made it a point to appear innovative and unique. In the Smartphone market there

The family in America Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The family in America - Assignment Example I do believe that there are instances in which one does not need to cite sources, of which I believe that this was an example of such a case. Some of the information presented on page two and three is original based on original research, while the rest may be considered as common knowledge. For example, most problems that face today’s family are not new and have been discussed by the media and with friends. As a result, I considered these to be original thoughts and ideas. Moreover, some of these issues, like children no longer being a reason for families to stay together, are issues that are easily observed. I also noted the reader’s comment about a lack of important detail to illustrate ideas presented by Hansen on page 4 and 5. Indeed, Hansen’s article is the basis of this paper and a lot of care was taken to ensure that her ideas were integrated into the paper as comprehensively as possible. As a result, I strived to include the concept of the family as discussed by Hansen in the article in accordance to the paper’s instructions. The paper especially sought to present Hansen’s argument on how working life for parents, as well as the informal networks constructed by parents, help in caring for children. Most importantly, however, I set out to incorporate her thoughts on the challenges and triumphs that families face in relation to social class, which I believe was essential to answering the research question. Not all concepts of the family covered by Hansen were included, since some of them did not fit with the thesis of the paper regarding the centrality o f kin as providers of care. Therefore, some of the concepts of family may have been left out. Finally, the reader also commented that the quote by Braithwaite could have been analysed and discussed further and I do agree with this observation. Since this quote formed part of my introduction, it was only meant to provide background information on how individuals render voluntary