Interest Free Sources and Unsecured Interest Bearing Sources A firm obtains its funds from a variety of sources. Some capital is provided by suppliers, creditors, and owners, while other funds arise from earnings retained in business. In this segment, let me explain to you the sources of short-term funds supplied by creditors. Characteristics of short-term financing: Cost of Funds: Some forms of short-term financing may prove to be expensive than that of intermediate and long-term financing while some short-term sources like Accruals and Payables provide funds at no cost to the firm. Rollover Effect: Short-term finance as the name indicates must be repaid within a period of one year – though some sources provide funds that are constantly rolled over. The funds provided by payables, may remain relatively constant because, as some accounts are paid, other accounts are created. Clean-up: This happens when commercial banks or other lenders demand the firm to pay-off its short term obligation at one point in a financial year. Goals of Short-Term Financing: Funds are needed to finance inventories during a production period. Short term funds facilitate flexibility wherein, it meets the fluctuating needs for funds over a given cycle, commonly 1 year. To achieve low-cost financing due to interest free loans. Cash flow from operations may not be sufficient to keep up with growth-related financing needs Interest Free Sources: Accounts Payable Accounts payable are created when the firm purchases raw material, supplies, or goods for resale on credit terms without signing a formal note for the liability. These purchases on “open account” are, for most firms, the single largest source of short-term financing. Payables represent an unsecured form of financing since no specific assets are pledged as collateral for the liability. Even though no formal note is signed, an accounts payable is a legally binding obligation of a firm. Postponing payment beyond the end of the net (credit) period is known as “stretching accounts payable” or “leaning on the trade.” Possible costs of “stretching accounts payable” are Cost of the cash discount (if any) forgone Late payment penalties or interest Deterioration in credit rating  Accruals: These are short term liabilities that arise when services are received but payment has not yet been made. The two primary accruals are wages payable and taxes payable. Employees work for a week, 2 weeks or a month before receiving a paycheck. The salaries or wages, plus the taxes paid by the firm on those wages, offer a form of unsecured short-term financing for the firm. The Government provides strict rules and procedures for the payment of withholding and social security taxes, so that the accrual of taxes cannot be readily manipulated. It is however, possible to change the frequency of paydays to increase or decrease the amount of financing through wages accrual.   Wages — Benefits accrue via no direct cash costs, but costs can develop by reduced employee morale and efficiency.   Taxes — Benefits accrue until the due date, but costs of penalties and interest beyond the due date reduce the benefits. Unsecured Interest Bearing Sources: Self-Liquidating Bank Loans The bank provides funds for a seasonal or cyclic business peak and the money is used to finance an activity that will generate cash to pay off the loan. Borrowed Funds → Finance Inventory → Peak Sales Season → Receivables → Cash → Pay Off the Loan. Three types of unsecured short-term bank loans: Single payment note – A short-term, one-time loan made to a borrower who needs funds for a specific purpose for a short period of time. Line of Credit – An informal arrangement between a bank and its customer specifying the maximum amount of...

Resume for Sales Know the purpose of your resume Need help in creating or updating your resume? It certainly can be a tough task because your resume is going to be reviewed by software as well as by hiring managers. This new column brings you  top resume tips for choosing a resume format, selecting a resume font, customizing your resume, using resume keywords, explaining employment gaps, and more tips for writing interview winning resumes. Try to understand that the purpose of  building your resume is to land an interview and make it as precise as possible and impress the recruiters with your profile. Business and Marketing Writing   A great resume is one that highlights your strengths and emphasizes the highs of your career. It is imperative for every professional to get his resume periodically updated to move up the corporate ladder. A resume has four sections: Personal Information. This includes your full name, city, contact number, e-mail address and social media profiles. Your personal information can appear at the top center part of the resume with a header positioned below it. Employment History. Your work history must be arranged beginning from current or most recent employer. It must indicate your designation, inclusive dates of employment and a description of your scope of responsibilities. Educational Attainment. This should also be arranged according to highest level of education attained. Details should include degree earned, inclusive dates and relevant awards or achievements. You do not have to include information from secondary education and earlier. Special Skills. This section is where you highlight core competencies and other skills you have that are relevant to the job opening. What are the key ingredients of a great resume? A sparkling profile with sufficient emphasis on your key strengths. A cover letter that guarantees a personal interview. Customized and tailor-made resumes. Designed by skilled resume writing experts. Professional formatting and layout. What should be there in a profile statement? Understand that highlighting your skills and experience in your profile is the “Catch Point” to impress your new recruiters. Financial Planning and Strategy, Marketing Concepts, Positioning, People Management, Territory Management, Sales Planning, Competitive Analysis, Understanding the Customer, Product Development, Client Relationships, Creative Services are some of the criteria that make a marketing/sales manager stand out from the crowd. Try to bring out the achievements in your career till date and who might be the better master to do it other than yourself! Q: What’s the most common resume mistake? A: Making too many general claims and using too much industry jargon that does not market the candidate. A resume is a marketing document designed to sell your skills and strengths rather than just portray a bio of the candidate. For unemployed candidates, handing out resumes should be a full-time job. The majority of mid- to senior-level positions are filled through networking, so contact absolutely everyone you know in addition to recruiters who are in a position to hire you or share...

Attitude and Job Satisfaction What is attitude? Attitudes are evaluative statements or judgments concerning objects, people or events –Stephen Robbin. They also represent an ‘affective orientation towards an object.’ It simply means what one feels and thinks about something. Elements of attitude: Cognitive components – opinion or belief Affective components – emotion or feeling Behavioral components – intention to behave The interaction of these three components determines the way in which an individual develops an attitude towards something. Sources: Society Friends Teachers Family Members It also forms on the basis of the level of admiration we have over an object or persons. People also try to imitate others and attitudes are gradually formed on that basis also. In some attitudes formed are less stable, in some they even dominate the whole life. Types: Organizational behavior uses the concept of attitudes in relation to nature of the job and its influence on the performance of the persons. Accordingly, Job Satisfaction Job Involvement and Organizational Commitment, are the three kinds of attitude a person could have with respect his / her job or organization. Job Satisfaction: In “Job Satisfaction “, Stephen P. Robbins writes about five factors which make a person satisfied with his or her job. These factors are Mentally challenging work Equitable rewards Supportive working conditions Supportive colleagues and Personality-job fit. Cranny, Smith and Stone define job satisfaction as employees’ emotional state concerning the job, considering what they anticipated and what they actually got out of it. In fact, an employee with low expectations can be more satisfied with a certain job than someone who has high expectations. If one’s expectations are met or surpassed by the job, then one is happy and satisfied with the job. Job Involvement: Job involvement has been defined as an individual’s psychological identification or commitment to his / her job. As such individuals who display high involvement in their jobs consider their work to be a very important part of their lives- In other words for highly involved individuals performing well on the job is important for their self esteem. Organizational Commitment: Three important elements of a committed individual would be Identification with the organization’s goals and/or mission Long-term membership in the organization and intention to remain with the organization, often termed loyalty High levels of extra role behavior- behavior beyond required performance- Often denoted to as citizenship behavior or pro-social behavior. Cognitive Dissonance Theory: Leon Festinger developed this theory which explains the relationship between attitude and behavior. It refers to”any incompatibility that an individual might perceive between two or more of his or her attitudes, or between his or her behavior and attitudes.” Attitude Surveys: This is a tool that helps to collect information about the levels of attitude among the people. In most companies these kinds of surveys are conducted with the help of different rating scales like Likert scale offering five or seven alternative choices for each of the statement developed for attitude measurement. Summary: Research conducted on attitude and job satisfaction in Indian workers has made clear certain points as given below: Attitude is positively correlated with efficiency Absenteeism will bring down satisfaction levels Unions, negatively affect the employee attitude and job satisfaction Attitude researches and surveys will improve...

Ratio Calculation From Financial Statement Profit and Loss a/c of Beta Manufacturing Company for the year ended 31st March 2010. Exercise Problem1 Kindly download this link to view the exercise. Given in pdf format. You are required to find out: a)      #Gross Profit Ratio b)      #Net Profit Ratio c)      #Operating Ratio d)      Operating #Net Profit to Net Sales Ratio a. GROSS FORFIT RATIO = Gross profit ÷ #Sales × 100 = 50,000 ÷ 1,60,000 × 100 = 31.25 % b. #NET PROFIT RATIO = Net profit ÷ Sales × 100 = 28,000 ÷ 1,60,000 × 100 = 17.5 %  c. OPERATING RATIO = #Cost of goods sold + Operating expenses ÷ Sales × 100 Cost of goos sold = Sales – Gross profit = 1,60,000 – 50,000 = Rs. 1,10,000 Operating expenses = 4,000 + 22,800 + 1,200 =  Rs. 28,000 Operating ratio = 1,10,000 + 28,000 ÷ 1,60,000 × 100 = 86.25 % d. OPERATING NET PROFIT TO NET SALES RATIO = Operating Profit ÷ Sales × 100 Operating profit = Net profit + Non-Operating expenses – Non operating income = 28,000 + 800 – 4,800 =  Rs. 32,000 Operating Net Profit to Net Sales Ratio = 32,000 ÷ 1,60,000 × 100 = 20 % What is a Financial statement? It is an organised collection of data according to logical and consistent #accounting procedure. It combines statements of balance sheet, income and retained earnings. These are prepared for the purpose of presenting a periodical report on the program of investment status and the results achieved i.e., the balance sheet and P& L a/c. Objectives of Financial Statement Analysis: To help in constructing future plans To gauge the earning capacity of the firm To assess the financial position and performance of the company To know the #solvency status of the firm To determine the #progress of the firm As a basis for #taxation and fiscal policy To ensure the legality of #dividends Financial Statement Analysis Tools  Comparative Statements Common Size Statements #Trend Analysis #Ratio Analysis Fund Flow Statement Cash Flow Statement Types of Financial Analysis Intra-Firm Comparison Inter-firm Comparison Industry Average or Standard  Analysis Horizontal Analysis Vertical Analysis Limitations Lack of Precision Lack of Exactness Incomplete Information Interim Reports Hiding of Real Position or Window Dressing Lack of Comparability Historical...

Perception in OB (Organizational Behavior) Context – The Sub-Processes Involved What is Perception? A cognitive information processing process that enables us to interpret and understand our environment. According to Stephen P Robbins, Perception is a process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory impressions in order to give meaning to their environment. The term originated from a Latin word ‘percepio’ meaning receiving, collecting, action of taking possession, apprehension with the mind or senses. The process by which people translate sensory impressions into a coherent and unified view of the world around them.     Difference between perception and sensation: There is a great deal of misunderstanding between sensation and perception. Perception is broader in sense than sensation and it is more complex. The process of perception involves an interaction of selection, organization and interpretation. Though it largely depends upon the senses to receive raw data or  information to be translated.     For example, when you view an object at a distance and slowly turn your eyes to the other side of the object, you feel as if the object is moving, but you very well know that is not the case – the object is stationary. The perceptual process overcomes the sensual process. The perceptual process adds to and subtracts from the “real” sensory world.   In an organizational context this can be best explained as follows: 1. A sub-ordinate’s answer to a question is based on what he heard the boss say, not on what the boss actually said. 2. The same worker may be viewed by one supervisor as a very good worker and by another supervisor as very poor worker. Game of your Mind – What is Perception? ALL ABOUT PERCEPTIONS! This video tell you all about perception, with excellent examples. Which will help you understand game of our mind. -What are perceptions? -How does one perceive? -What are …   SOBC MODEL OF PERCEPTION: S-Stimulus, O-Organizing and Interpreting Data, B-Behavior, C-Consequences The S-O-B-C Model best explains the sub-process involved in perception. The process starts only when the person or individual is confronted with sensual stimulation which then leads to internal cognitive processes of registration, interpretation and feedback. I’m reminded of this saying by Moorhead & Griffin “If everyone perceived everything the same way, things would be a lot simpler”. The very difference in the manner in which people perceive and react to the same matter is what makes life more interesting but alas, complicating too. A supervisor’s raised eye-brow or change in voice modulation is a definite warning signal which never goes un-noticed by the sub-ordinates as it affects the psychological process of a person directly.   General Perceptional Errors: Fundamental attribution error: The tendency to underestimate the influence of external factors and overestimate the influence of internal factors when making judgments about the behaviour of others Self-serving bias: The inclination to ascribe one’s own successes to internal factors and blame one’s own failures on external factors Selective perception: The tendency to selectively interpret what is seen based on one’s interests, background, experience and attitudes Projection: The tendency to attribute one’s own characteristics to other people Stereotyping: The tendency to evaluate someone on the basis of the perception of a group to which that person belongs Halo effect: The tendency to draw a general impression about an individual based on a single characteristic Perception is how you look at things. Attitude is the way that you act towards something. Although perception can determine your attitude, you do not have to let...