Explain How and Why the Populist Party Was Created free essay sample

Alignment Of The Human Resources Strategy Commerce Essay

A corporate plan is the one which speaks to the general vision and the crucial an organization. Numerous organizations neglect to focus on this and all they center is around the bring forthing the products and ventures believing it fulfills the requests and needs of the customer which is other than of import yet is non everything an organization does. Let ‘s get down up with the purpose of the task, the ground for this examination is to gauge the linkage of an organization ‘s human asset ‘s conspire and the corporate plan. Presently by the corporate plan here we mean is the general vision set by the organization. This announcement can be defended by numerous essayists and is the existent certainty that everybody in the organization ought to cognize. The ground is that the organizations bomb to a great extent is, they are non ready to set up a powerful plan ( Verena, V 2006 ) of their utilitarian nations, for example, the HR, selling, fund and so forth. The task is focusing predominantly with the HR and it ‘s arranging and the corporate plan. â€Å" Corporate plan concerns two distinct requests: what concern the enterprise ought to be in and how the corporate office should pull off the variety of the worry units. † ( Porter, M. 1990 ) The above definition uncovers two aspects that first every organization ought to cognize the business it is covering. Second, the extent of concern units an organization bargains in. Presently clearly the corporate plan can non be satisfied without the correct commitment of the HR as such the representatives to pull out the most ideal outcome ( Rowe, A. 2006 ) . Subsequently the build of alining the HR plan could be separated by this impression. Hence, this task assesses the plans laid by Singapore Airlines so as to achieve the general corporate plan of the organization. The bit of this exploration is the basic factor which would hold made the overseeing of the representatives shockingly better dependent on the writing utilized in the evaluation. THE CORPORATE STRATEGY AND OBJECTIVES OF SINGAPORE AIRLINESOverviewSingapore Airlines is an enhanced organization covering in grouped related concerns having fitting to an article composed by Heracleous, L. , Wirtz, J. , viz. : Singapore Airport Terminal ( 80.8 % ) Singapore Engineering Company ( 81 % ) Singapore Airlines Cargo ( 100 % ) Silk Air ( 100 % ) Tiger Airways ( 49 % ) Virgin Atlantic ( 49 % )Corporate SchemeGiven that the organization bargains in enhanced concerns Singapore Airlines at its corporate degree follows the plan of related variegation. A related variegation conspire is in which: â€Å" †¦ an organization works in a few worries that are someway connected to each other † ( Ricky, W. Griffin 2007 ) Fitting to Ricky, W. Griffin there are three fundamental advantages of using such a plan which are: The organizations that utilization such a plan do non rely upon any one concern cut bringing down the financial threats. They chop down the working uses for example the expenses are isolated by the figure of concerns. There is an intelligent assault of lolling the qualities and ability through a figure of concerns it works in.AimHarmonizing to an article composed by Jochen W, Loizos H, and Nitin P, the points of Singapore Airlines were to: Gracefully a predominant customer fulfillment that will be reliable and respectably estimated. A lovely ROI to the investors and bring forthing equivalent total compensations to manage the cost of a sufficient help for investings. Build up the best Human Resources designs that draw, develop, spur and hold the work power which play a capacity in achieving the house ‘s points. Amplify the limit of activities and use all the accessible assets. With the above alluded plan and points of Singapore Airlines through the bore witness to beginnings obviously the house from it ‘s truly establishing has a build of pull offing its ‘ workers ( cost effectivity ) in such a way, that it conveys and continues a five star administration. Note: This region is intentionally perfect A CRITICAL EVALUATION OF HUMAN RESOURCES STRATEGIES IN CONTEXT TO SINGAPORE AIRLINES Realizing that Singapore Airlines has a corporate plan that is connected separated one and the point of the house is to achieve driving for in a top of the line administration which implies the vision of the Singapore Airlines is to stay before the adversaries. Presently by this it other than assessed that it is an air hose industry which is a help based industry. A sensible impression to procure from the points set by Singapore Airlines is that it needs to focus on using the assets in such a way, that it ends up being in greatness and the interest of best individuals with best open introduction through their achievements. In a situation of such a sort this task takes a basic reappraisal of the plans laid by the organization with the guide of accessible writing on in what manner can an undaunted do the best open introduction sending and redeploying the HR and the HR plans utilized by Singapore Airlines. These plans can be extricated by the guide of the graph given beneath which is trailed by the record of every one of the scheme.RECRUITMENT AND SELECTIONâ€Å" Furthermore, â€Å" the individuals enlisted † in an undertaking or an association makes the worry human progress which can closer view attempts ‘ puts and do them not the same as opponents. † ( Vinet, N. 2010 ) The definition spring by Vinet draws an of import that the enrolling plan ought to be finished with the coalition of the desired point of an organization as it is the individuals in the organization who bargain who speak to the undertaking by making a development and that separates the organizations from the challengers. An exploration directed by Jochen W, Loizos H, and Nitin P Singapore Airlines is the one which is a lot of worry of this undertaking as they lay a careful plan in the enrolling technique and a thorough methodology of picking the representatives. The strategy of enlisting and selection of representatives experiences the undermentioned stages as assessed from the exploration: Gauge enrolling and Screening: at the extremely first measure from an extent of appliers the appearing of the appliers is made on the bases of their age ranges, scholarly makings and physical properties. Meetings: the appliers which are fruitful in the indicating are more remote take three unit of ammo of meetings. Uniform test: the appliers after the meeting stages need to go through the trial of their visual angles in the uniform. Water preliminaries: an affirmation degree testing is done of the appliers ‘ for example they are made to jump in H2O from a height of three meters, this gives the situation to the questioner what the response of them will be if such a situation comes up where they need to accompany the riders in the H2O. Psychometric preliminary: the mental preliminaries are so conduct to pass judgment on the knowledge, perspectives, aptitudes and characters of the appliers. After the enrolling is made the fruitful appliers are more remote observed on a multi month test thus contracted for five mature ages if effective. This methodology of choosing is a most thorough technique by which Singapore Airlines guarantees that they enlist the individuals with right achievements ascribes the organization wants to hold to achieve the set aims.Training AND DEVELOPMENTAn article Greg Procknow gives five of import grounds concerning why planning is fundamental in an organization: Preparing adds to the general plan. Guarantees the quality out of the workers through the arrangement and improvement. Guaranting the security and wellbeing is kept among the workers each piece great as the customers Drawing in the gifted individuals and hold the bing 1s. Non-monetary wagess for the workers for representation: exposures. Singapore Airlines has a decent lucifer given better than that it believes that planning is pool that joins itself with the representatives. It holds a decent highlight on the arrangement on the workers focusing on the point that being a help based organization the representatives the only methods by which it can achieve its key points and adhere to the corporate plan. In this way an examination directed by Jochen W, Loizos H, and Nitin P, Singapore Airlines bunch has seven readiness schools for the seven boss spots of activities and administration movement: Lodge group Flight tasks Business planning Data building Security Air terminal administrations planning and innovation Further the readiness classs are led on a four and twenty nine months for the bing representatives to help them cognize and follow what the organization anticipates from them. Singapore Airlines follows comprehensive plan in building up the HR which is non just worried about the health and wellbeing issues yet next to on the useful issues and excellence consideration, high-caliber and outsider supplement and vino, craft of discussion. The house has a Management Development Center ( MDC ) other than offers general bearing readiness under the skyline of the HR division.Service DELIVERY TEAMS[ Maximizing PERFORMANCE ]Harmonizing to Jochen W, Loizos H, and Nitin P, the highlight is laid so as to pull out a high estimation of open introduction from the workers through open introduction appraisals. Through the open introduction examinations the organization is doing the crews efficacious in executing. The open introduction is assessed and guaranteed through the devotees: The pioneers or the organization administer the staff advancements The Staff open introductions are assessed and imparted to them through appraisals. The staffs are managed irregularly. Inputs are taken other than from the observed. An improved checking is finished setting up on the representatives criticism. As a result of such a bar

Write a Great Conclusion for a Research Paper

Write a Great Conclusion for a Research Paper When creating a good research work, its conclusion must sound like a last accord in the song. This is the last part of your work, so it should make the reader feel that your piece is finished and well-done. If the audience will stay impressed after reading your work, they will definitely read more of your papers in the future. If you feel stuck during writing a good conclusion paragraph for a research paper, we are here to help you in this! Follow all rules you found in this guide, and we promise you will create a bright and strong last paragraph. We have gathered important tips about this paragraphs goal, what information you should bring there, and how to make it effective. Keep in your mind that a weak and uninteresting conclusion makes the entire paper weak, no matter how good you made it. The main mission of the last paragraph When you finish a research paper, its important to summarize the aim and content of the entire work without making it too long. In the final part, you must restate a thesis statement and sum up all important points of the work. This is a last paragraph of the project and it should make the audience feel that your work is finished. What to include into the conclusion? If you need to know how to write a conclusion for a research paper, you have to remember these three rules: You need to keep the introduction paragraph around, but you shouldnt rewrite a thesis from there. All you need is to restate it with other words. A good conclusion should have at least 3 sentences, this is a minimum. In this paragraph, you need to finish your paper without bringing any new ideas and information. How to write a conclusion for a research paper step-by-step Follow these simple steps to finish your work properly: Rephrase the topic and explain why your paper is important. Make sure you do it shortly; usually the one sentence is enough. Rephrase your thesis from the introduction. But dont make it the same to that thesis statement. Sum up the main things shortly. It means you need to provide the audience with information you put in the main part of your work. Explain your points shortly. You have to summarize your argument and if needed, to call people to the action. More tips how to write a good conclusion for a research paper Here are several hints how to make your last paragraph effective. Your last part of work should be written similar to the first part. But dont repeat those words, try to rephrase them. Tie your work by connecting your conclusion with the introduction. Here are the main rules how to do it: Put a question at the beginning of your paper, and provide your readers with the answer at the end. Put an interesting story at the very beginning, but dont share the end of it. Then provide the continuation at the last part. Find and read samples. A bright and successful example of a conclusion for a research paper can be quite helpful to create your own paragraph. Finish your work logically. Make a logical and clear opinion supported by strong evidence. Bring a question instead of making an explanation. This will force the readers to form their own understanding of your work. Make people to do some action, give them a recommendation or suggestion. Writing a conclusion for a research paper: guide to avoid mistakes Avoid phrases “in the conclusion”, “at the end of research”, “in summary”. Such phrases can weak your work. They sound very unnatural and your last paragraph sounds too straight to the audience. Instead, we suggest using phrases “As my paper demonstrated”, “To sum up”, “We can say”, etc. Dont bring any new facts in this part. This is not a right place for it â€" all such things should be put in the body part of the work. Avoid phrases “I think”, “My opinion is”, “I can say that”. You should provide readers with the conclusion made by points you put into the paper, but not by your own opinion. All work is based on facts, so the conclusion should end your paper with phrases “By all counts”, “According to provided results”, “By summing up all things we said above”. Dont bring any apologies. Such phrases like “I am not a good expert in this”, “My thoughts could be wrong”, “I am not sure”. In general, a research paper shouldnt be created from the first person words. Usually, only informal papers are written this way, so it cant be used for a formal paper. When you finished the last part, make sure you checked it for grammar and logical errors. Remember that your work must look professional and clear, so dont forget to pay attention to this thing. Successful sample of a conclusion paragraph for a research paper There is no doubt that smoking affects people health. Smokers get lungs cancer much often than other people, plus their life is shorter compared to non-smokers. According to research provided in this paper, smokers can get many other health problems like high pressure, heart attack, problems with skin, stomach and a bad cough. Their lungs couldnt provide them with enough air, and every new cigarette puts them closer to death. Dont let this bad habit to kill you, but make your life better and quit! We do hope this guide was helpful for you. Follow all tips we provided you in the article, and create a bright and logical conclusion for your research paper. Of course, writing is not easy, but when you know all the needed rules and understand the way of building your work, then you will create a successful paper!

Profile of Mary Lacey Sr. & Mary Lacey Jr, Salem Trials

The name â€Å"Mary Lacey† belongs to two women involved in the Salem witch trials of 1692: Mary Lacey the mother (referred to here as Mary Lacey Sr.), and her daughter Mary Lacey (referred to here as Mary Lacey Jr.). Mary Lacey Facts Known for:  in the 1692  Salem witch trialsAge at time of Salem witch trials:  Mary Lacey Sr. was about 40, and Mary Lacey Jr. was 15 or 18 (sources differ)Dates: Mary Lacey Sr.:  July 9, 1652- 1707.  Mary Lacey Jr.: 1674? - ?Also known as:  Mary Lacy Family, Background: Mary Lacey Sr. was the daughter of Ann Foster and her husband, Andrew Foster.  Ann Foster emigrated from England in 1635.  Mary Lacey Sr. was born about 1652.  She married Lawrence Lacey on August 5, 1673. Mary Lacey Jr. was born about 1677. Mary Lacey and the Salem Witch Trials When Elizabeth Ballard of Andover fell ill with a fever in 1692, the doctors suspected witchcraft, knowing of the events in nearby Salem.  Ann Putnam Jr. and Mary Wolcott were called to Andover to see if they could identify the witch, and they fell into fits upon seeing Ann Foster, a 70-something widow.  She was arrested and sent to Salem jail on July 15. She was examined on July 16 and 18.  She resisted acknowledging that she had committed any witchcraft. An arrest warrant was issued against Mary Lacey Jr. on July 20th, for â€Å"Committed Sundry acts of witchcraft on Eliz Ballerd, the wife of Jos Ballerd of Andover. to her great hurt.† She was arrested the next day and brought to an examination by John Hathorne, Jonathan Corwin, and John Higginson.  Mary Warren fell into a violent fit at the sight of her.  Mary Lacey Jr. testified that she had seen her mother, grandmother and Martha Carrier flying on poles given by the Devil.  Ann Foster, Mary Lacey Sr. and Mary Lacey Jr. were examined again that same day by Bartholomew Gedney, Hathorne, and Corwin, â€Å"accused of practicing witchcraft upon Goody Ballard.† Mary Lacey Sr. accused her mother of witchcraft, probably to help deflect the charges against herself and her daughter.  Ann Foster had until that time denied the charges; she may have shifted strategies to save her daughter and granddaughter. Mary Lacey Sr. was indicted for bewitching Mercy Lewis in Salem on July 20. On September 14, the testimony of those who charged Mary Lacey Sr. with witchcraft was delivered in writing.  On September 17, the court tried and convicted  Rebecca Eames, Abigail Faulkner, Ann Foster, Abigail Hobbs, Mary Lacey Sr., Mary Parker, Wilmott Redd, Margaret Scott, and Samuel Wardwell, and they were condemned to be executed. Later in September, the last eight convicted of witchcraft were hanged, and at the end of the month, the Court of Oyer and Terminer stopped meeting. Mary Lacey After the Trials Mary Lacey Jr was released from custody on October 6, 1692, on a bond. Ann Foster died in jail in December of 1692; Mary Lacey was eventually released.  Mary Lacey Jr. was indicted on January 13 for â€Å"covenanting.† In 1704, Mary Lacey Jr. married Zerubbabel Kemp. Lawrence Lacey sued for restitution for Mary Lacey in 1710.  In 1711, the  legislature of the Province of Massachusetts Bay  restored all rights to many of those who had been accused in the 1692 witch trials. Included were George Burroughs, John Proctor, George Jacob, John Willard, Giles and  Martha Corey,  Rebecca Nurse,  Sarah Good, Elizabeth How,  Mary Easty, Sarah Wilds, Abigail Hobbs, Samuel Wardell, Mary Parker,  Martha Carrier, Abigail Faulkner, Anne Foster, Rebecca Eames, Mary Post, Mary Lacey, Mary Bradbury and Dorcas Hoar. Mary Lacey Sr. died in 1707.

Technology And Its Effect On Human Development - 888 Words

Memory, as the most basic mode of information transfer in human experience, has shaped identity and created continuity through time throughout history. Historically, technology has provided memory-aid devices to assist human’s interactions with information. However, with the prevalence of computers and digital technologies today, there are modern concerns about whether the use of technology is to assist human activity and that to replace human intelligence. While current debates rage on about the value and consequences of technological infringement on human memory, it is inevitable that technology will continue to change. Though the development of technology might be having a detrimental effect on memory, human should not fear, but learn to adapt to the rapid growth of technology. Over the history, technology has been used not only to preserve, but also to propagate information that was once the territory of memory. Boornstin describes the enormous impact on the Western world due to the introduction of the printing press. With the proliferation of printed books, ideas spread much more quickly and abstractions resulting from those ideas were easier to pass on and develop amongst the learned. As the volume of information grew, improvements in the structure of the printed format, such as continuous pagination, tables of contents, and indexes allowed easier reference to the information contained within books (Boornstin, 1983). All of these developments simultaneously eased theShow MoreRelatedNegative Effects Of Technology1022 Words   |  5 PagesTechnology affects every aspect of our lives. We as humans use it every day with little to no thought. Humans are becoming more reliant on the internet and other forms of technology to receive their information and comm unicate. However, the increase in the use of technology has had a negative effect on humans’ health and development and communication. Technology changes the way we live our daily lives, the way we develop, and the way we communicate. Technology is a double edged sword. The internetRead More Early Humans and the Environment Essay1092 Words   |  5 PagesEarly Humans and the Environment Approximately 3.5 million years ago our ancestors first learned to walk upright. They were â€Å"homo erectus†, and with this innovation of walking upright they began to appreciated some things that we take for granted today like having our hands free, and increased mobility. As humans progressed along their history they earned the distinction of â€Å"homo sapiens†. This title was conferred as the brain casing increased in size indicating the developmental processRead MoreTechnology has Effects in Our Lives The development of technology has significantly changed700 Words   |  3 PagesTechnology has Effects in Our Lives The development of technology has significantly changed society. An endless number of People all over the world use and benefit from modern technology, and the incredible opportunities it provides play a significant role in almost all fields of human life. Technology has simplified the access to many necessary tools people need in education, industry, medicine, communication, transportation, and so on. However, excessive usage of technology has its drawbacksRead MoreIs Entertainment Technology Beneficial?902 Words   |  4 PagesIs entertainment technology beneficial to infants from birth to the age of two? Entertainment technology is the discipline of using manufactured or created components to enhance or make possible in any sort of entertainment experience(dictionary.com). Entertainment technology is used for many different reasons as well as necessities such as work, school, communication, and social media. The rapid emergence of entertainment technology has changed the way the world works and interacts with each otherRead MoreTrying to Erradicate Poverty and Extreme Poverty1351 Words   |  5 Pagesto feed and shelter the poor but people in the North consume so much. The rich benefit from this inequality while the poor suffer. One way to raise the standard of living in a country would be through economic development. The Global North was able to achieve this economic development through the boom of technological progress during the Industrial Revolution. This economic growth catapulted these countries into the modern age while poor countries were left in the dust. As these countries got richerRead MoreHow Technology Has Impacted Modern Society1493 Words   |  6 PagesIn the 21st century, conventional society is characterized by a digital age of technology which supplies the individual with innumerable facets of entertainment and an endless stream of information. Technology not only provides us with an unchallenging route of accessing knowledge, it also makes many activities which once required some physical or mental effort, easy. The list of how technology has positively impacted modern society through medicine, mechanics, and research is too long to be writtenRead MoreThe Earth s Land Resources Essay 965 Words   |  4 PagesArctic, desert, and other places humans cannot survive, everyone can use an area of less than 0.023 sq . km . http://www.tsinghuaiaq.com/zhuanjiajianyi/187/, which is most used for farming, therefore, so the lands can be used to living is very few. Green building design through a variety of methods to make the building as a whole in conjunction with the site, the site through the use of natural features to increase the comfort of humans, while reducing the impact of human activities on the environmentRead MoreSocial Learning Theory : Theory Of Reward And Punishment Of Behavioral Reinforcement955 Words   |  4 Pagesin understanding childhood development and human behavior in the cyber environment and â€Å"sociotechnical† environment of ANT and human ghosting. Social learning theory can also help in understanding impacts of technological developments on human beings. People learn from each other how to behave in a new environment. Social learning theory explains many childhood social, moral, and cognitive developments in people’s environment, which could be applied to understanding human ghosting phenomena in cyberRead MoreTechnology Devices Can Enhance Social Development For Children Essay1491 Words   |  6 PagesIntroduction Purpose: The purpose of this literature review is to determine whether technology devices can enhance social development for children in schools. This literature review summarises peer and non-peer reviewed literature nationally and internationally. I mainly researched data bases from Porirua Library. Outline: This literature review summarises peer and non-peer reviewed literature nationally and internationally. I mainly researched data bases from Porirua Library. Literature was gainedRead MoreTechnology On Our Generation s Future1239 Words   |  5 PagesPhilosophy December 16, 2016 Technology on our Generation’s Future Technology is machinery created by scientific knowledge that serves an active role in our industries (Computerhope). Around the world technology has become one of the most popular forms of communication (Computerhope). Starting with regular rotary phones and advancing into Instagram, twitter and facetime. Technology dating back to 1943 when the first computer was created by J. Presper Eckert

One Nation Under Corn Free Essays

A position paper done in fall of 2012 on the cause and affect of the industrialized corn crop. I decided on this subject after my own battle with illness. This battle, ended up changing my diet, and my life as it turns out. We will write a custom essay sample on One Nation Under Corn? or any similar topic only for you Order Now I have almost completely removed any corn derived product from my life (all-be-it difficult sometimes) and am a proponent of a purely organic vegetarian diet. One Nation Under Corn? Chad Cribb DeVry University One Nation Under Corn One of the many freedoms we enjoy in this great country is the freedom to choose what you will eat and when you will eat it. Pull up to your favorite fast food burger restaurant, and little thought goes into the entire process. From the drive there, to the ordering of your food, and the packaging they are contained in. When we think more about it, as Michael Pollan did in his book, â€Å"The Omnivore’s Dilemma†, there is a whole lot more going on. Pollan dives deep into the heart of our nation’s fascination with the corn crop and its many uses. Corn started out as a crop grown to feed its people. But in this day and age, very little is actually eaten. Corn has become a giant in the food industry, at a low price; thanks in part to the government help. We started this nation as one based in principle and in the pursuit of freedom†¦. and now it seems†¦ corn. But who is the real beneficiary of this corn crop? And just as important†¦who are the losers? Corn has been around since recorded history and has played a major role in trade and many complex social societies. Corn’s spread across the globe began after contact between the European colonial powers and indigenous peoples of North and South America. It continued on to Africa during the slave trades and was used to actually pay for them. What’s more, it was a source of power for the African middlemen involved in the slave trade. Fast forward now to the 1940’s and 1950’s as corn and corn based foods became crucial in the agriculture market to sustain military troops during the war. It was after the war that America saw a huge surplus in corn yield partly due to the new hybrid seeds and fertilizers that had recently been manufactured. This surplus had a dramatic effect on the market and the market prices. It was these prices, over the years that caused unpredictable price swings (Wise 2005-9). As our population has increasingly grown thru the years, our need for more food has increased along with it. The polarity between the two was unbalanced and by using the free market approach, farmers regularly had booms and busts in the market. Making farmers the target of continued and increasing depressed prices in their crop. The government soon stepped in with â€Å"The New Deal†, in order to bring supply into line with demand, an approach known as â€Å"supply management† using conservation set-asides, a price floor guaranteeing a fair price (like having a minimum wage), and a grain reserve to deal with overproduction. What was not widely known, it appears, is the corporate-world began lobbying for a free market approach again. Beginning in the 1970’s, they used the World Food Crisis and the Russian Wheat Deal to validate their argument to government. Coupling that with the notion of â€Å"getting government out of agriculture†. The result of that was that prices collapsed by the late 1990’s and the government had to bail out farmers with millions in emergency subsidy payments. Prices completely collapsed shortly after the 1996 Freedom to Farm Act, causing expensive taxpayer bailouts. By 2000, subsidies provided 49% of farmers’ net income. This has helped the corn industry to comprise 95% of all food grain produced in America (USDA 2010). The government’s well-intended approach to help â€Å"prop up† the industry, in fact, created a market dependent on the very subsidies that were created to help it. Between 1995 and 2006, the government paid out $56 billion in corn subsidies (Wise 2005-12). What’s more, it helps create a market monopoly. With only 3 companies controlling 90% of the corn market, 2 companies controlling the corn seed market, and 4 companies controlling the high fructose corn syrup industry, the answer should be clear. But as Pollan points out, â€Å"It’s not about who is profiting, but rather who is suffering† (Pollan 2006). Most of what we see in the news is the emphasis placed in the trials and tribulations of the farmer, for the benefit of the consumer. But is it really the consumer who benefits? If the price of food per calorie is the magic calculation, then the answer is yes. But if the average weight per person is, then the answer is no. As the corn industry exploded and the number of companies shrank, corn began a new transformation into other parts of the food industry and more. This came in the form of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), gasoline additives, plastics, and cattle feed to name a few. Cattle feed now encompasses over 50% of the industrialized corn produced in America (Wise 2005-11). The increase of this has helped create the perpetual cycle that has infested the industry, and moreover, the agricultural policy that affects it. The overproduction of corn has led to an overconsumption of corn; mostly in an indirect way. America’s agriculture and international trade policies have created an environment that breeds monopolies and corruption. Big business lobbyist has taken hold in an industry that believes in the â€Å"bottom line†. This philosophy has squeezed out the once popular sugar cane, and ushered in the cheaper, easily produced, HFCS for its products. Because the government has placed so many incentives on the production of corn, other more healthy crops have been left behind. Crops like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains have quickly become a thing of the past. The relationship between government and business has become as unhealthy as the population consuming the products they produce. At one point, it almost looks like the industry wanted the market to crash and the government to step in. One would ask why anyone would want that. Because subsidizing the industrial crop ensures it stays at a cheap price for one. Secondly, the corporations who buy corn to turn into high fructose corn syrup (used in almost every food product) or as feed for livestock, or ethanol for vehicles operations have profited by the billions. Thirdly, the corporate consolidation of our food system as whole. When you think about it, it reaches thru banks, seeds, fertilizers, grain traders, food processors, manufacturing plant, to retailing. Walsh says, â€Å"This kind f uncompetitive market squeezes the farmer on both sides† (Walsh-2009). This notion seems to place a lot of blame on the subsidies themselves. My contention is that subsidies are not the problem with our food system, but merely a product of a broken system. To fix the farm policy, legislators must first have a clear understanding of who wins and who loses under the current system and why. Also, the high tariffs placed on sugar cane need to be downsized to allow for balance in the market. But this is a prime example of how the government’s intention to help has unintentional consequences. I believe that the root of our problem today is the â€Å"clinging† to a free market food system. One that allows commodities like corn to be priced so low that would allow big business to develop monopolies over farmers and corn while reaping huge profits because of cheap corn. America now spends less of our income on food than any other generation in history (Pollan-2002). When you look at it in perspective, the agriculture our grandparents helped build was now growing fast food. This affecting our wallets, farmlands, and waistline. Some may say that our waistline and rate of disease are due to laziness and other factors. I disagree. I believe they are a direct relation to cheap, processed food made by cheap, industrialized corn. In order for us to decrease the consumption of corn, the government needs to cease its subsidizing of it. This will do two things. One, it let the markets adjust themselves at a rate that creates dependence on itself rather than assistance. Two, tighten the ability of lobbyist to affect change in agriculture and government policy that increase benefits to the very few. The bottom line here is this; big business reaps profits at the expense of the farmer. And the consumer? Well†¦. we are just scenery it seems in this great manipulation of industrialized food industry. And as I see it; in an economy where every dollar counts, doesn’t it make sense for the government to hang onto theirs? Pollan, Michael. The Omnivore’s Dilemma. â€Å"A Natural History of Four Meals†. April 2006 This well-known book has been called an â€Å"eater’s manifesto† by critics and peers alike. Pollan, Michael. What’s America Eating? Smithsonian, June 2006. Retrieved on October 4, 2012 http://michaelpollan. om/articles-archive/whats-eating-america/ An article, written with a chronological touch, that takes reader from â€Å"soup-to-nuts† on the history of corn and how it came to western America. Pollan, Michael. When Crop Becomes King. NY Times. July 2002. Retrieved on October 1, 2012 http://www. organicconsumers. org/toxic /toomuchcorn071902. cfm An article written in a way that is easily understood for most. This article describes Zea Mays (original term) from Central America to what we know today as corn Walsh, Bryan. â€Å"Getting Real About the High Price of Cheap Corn†. Time Magazine. August 21, 2009. http://www. time. com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1917726-2,00. html Walsh is a senior writer for Time Magazine and a correspondent for the last 8 years Health Journalism Fellowship from the Center for Disease Control Foundation. As part of this fellowship, he attended training at the U. S. Centers for Disease Control during summer 2010. Wise, Timothy. Identifying the Real Winners from US Agricultural Policies. Tufts University. December 2005. Retrieved October 1, 2012. http://www. ase. tufts. edu/gdae/Pubs/wp/05-07RealWinnersUSAg. pdf How to cite One Nation Under Corn?, Papers

Locke And The American Political System Essays -

Locke And The American Political System John Locke and his ideas about philosophy was a major influence on the American political system, not to mention many other political systems, too. His ideas were very universal, especially those regarding rights and freedom, two topics for which the United States of America is best known. Locke claimed that ?there is a law of nature governing human beings and that it is knowable by human reason?(Lavine, 136). This law of nature is the basis of American politics, one by which we all live by today. This law included the idea that all human beings are equal, ?possessing the same natural rights of life, liberty, and property...? and that all human beings have the ?same obligation not to infringe on the rights of other?(136). Most of laws and justifications Americans live by today are based on exactly these arguments. John Locke's statements about this law of nature for all human beings justified many revolutions, including the American revolution of 1776. Because this revolution had such a great impact on American political system, it is clear just how significant Locke's beliefs were, and still are. His ideas were even clearly put in the American Declaration of Independence. In Jefferson's words, the Declaration of Independence states: ?We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness...? Today, the American people may not recognize it at all, but they do all live by the laws revealed by John Locke.

Blake - Nurses Song essays

Blake - Nurse's Song essays We all enter into this life wide-eyed and idealistic. Each day we interact, learn, and experience what life has to offer. At some point, these experiences seep into our being and transform us from the innocent babe of childhood into a supposedly mature adult. What causes this theft of innocence? Do we all succumb in the end? These issues are brought forth in a book of poetry by William Blake. The first section of his work deals with the idea of our blossoming innocence. Once he has fully developed this theme, he moves on to critique the idea of experience and the benefits or drawbacks contained within. To juxtaposes these two very contrasting ideas, Blake writes paired poems that are contained within the separate sections. He is trying to show us each notion through its opposite and presenting the belief that ones view is dependent solely upon the attitude with which one perceives the situations surrounding him. The idea that we can only understand a theme through the eyes of its opposite is nothing new. Along these lines we see that innocence can only be viewed when it is lacking and you are in a state of experience. Our view of experience cannot be seen in this same light though. It is impossible to directly view experience in a state of innocence because we have not yet entered into this realm of being; therefore, we can only view and judge our new found experience through the memories we hold onto of our original innocence. The bottom line ultimately holds though, in order to gain full understanding it is imperative to examine one theme through the use of the other. To comprehend this abstract idea, Blake provides us with a great example in The Nurses Poem. One of the first things to note are the similarities between the first two stanzas of each poem. Many of the words are shared between the two and even the r...

Top Tips for Succeeding in Statistics Class

Top Tips for Succeeding in Statistics Class Sometimes statistics and mathematics classes can seem among the hardest that one takes at college. How can you do well in a class like this? Below are some hints and ideas to try so that you can do well in your statistics and mathematics courses. The tips are arranged by things that you can do in class and things that will help outside of class. While in Class Be prepared. Bring paper for notes/quizzes/tests, two writing implements, a calculator, and your textbook.Be attentive. Your primary focus should be whats going on in class, not your cell phone or Facebook newsfeed.Take careful and complete notes. If your instructor thinks that something is important enough to write on the board, it should be written in your notes. The examples that are given will help you when you study and work problems on your own.Write the date and section covered in your notes at the beginning of each class. This will help when you study for tests.Be respectful of your classmates time and ask questions that are pertinent to the material being covered. (e.g. Why is the number of degrees of freedom one less than the sample size?) Save questions that pertain only to you (e.g. Why did I get 2 points taken off for problem number 4?) for your instructors office hours or after class.Dont feel the need to cram as much as possible on a page of notes. Leave plenty of room so that you can write your own comments when you use your notes to study. When test/quiz/assignment due dates are announced, immediately write them in your notes or what you use as a calendar. Outside of Class Math is not a spectators sport. You need to practice, practice, practice by working out problems in the homework assignments.Plan on spending at least two hours studying and/or doing problems for every 50-minute class session.Read your textbook. Constantly review what has been covered and read ahead to prepare yourself for class.Get in the habit of consistently doing work for your courses.Dont procrastinate. Start studying for your tests around a week in advance.Spread out work for large assignments. If you have difficulties early on you can get help more quickly than if you wait until the night before.Utilize office hours. If your schedule doesnt match your instructors office hours, ask if it is possible to make an appointment for a different time. When you come to office hours, be ready with specific questions about what you had trouble with or didnt understand.Utilize any tutoring services that your college or university provides. Sometimes these services are offered at no cost to students. Review your notes constantly. Form study groups or get a study partner in each of your classes. Meet to go over questions, work on homework, and study for tests.Dont lose the syllabus or any other handouts. Hold onto them until after you get your final grades. If you lose the syllabus, go to the course webpage to get a replacement.If you get stuck on a problem and dont make progress on it after 15 minutes, call your study partner and continue working on the rest of the assignment.take responsibility. If you know you will miss a test for any reason, let your instructor know as soon as possible.Purchase the textbook. If you have an older edition of the book, it is your responsibility - not your instructors - to see what that the sections/page numbers mentioned in class correspond within your book.If you are a statistics or math major, strongly consider keeping your textbooks and dont sell them back. Your statistics book will be a convenient reference.

Organization Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Organization Development - Essay Example This institution was founded in 1979 as a social service agency in St. Paul, Minnesota. In 1987, the agency opened an office in Bamburg, South Carolina with the executive director serving as the only staff person. This company does not have a merit system in place. There are enough employees now and the organization wants to implement an appropriate merit system. Within a few months of operation in South Carolina, the first child was placed in one of our foster homes and this institution have consistently grown since. By 1994, the need for serving a special population of foster youth was identified and the agency began providing a medically-fragile program. In March, 2005, Growing Home Southeast acquired the programs of Family Resources, Inc. of Beaufort, SC, increased its staff size to nearly fifty employees statewide, managed services for more than 200 clients and entered the home-based services market. Analysis of the organizational status of the Growing Home Southeast was conducted. Various aspects of the organization were studied such as the management of the organization, projects, supervision of the institution, management of client relationships and strategies. The researcher also performed extensive analysis of database and system response times with custom realtime diagnostic tools, and designed optimizations to address performance, bottlenecks, and increasing database capacity fourfold. According to Choo (2001), scanning or browsing behavior is influenced by external factors such as environmental turbulence and resource dependency, organizational factors such as the nature of the business and the strategy pursued, information factors such... This essay stresses that environmental scanning is the acquisition and use of information about events, trends, and relationships in an organization's external environment, the knowledge of which would assist management in planning the organization's future course of action. Thispaper makes a conclusion that organizations scan the environment in order to understand the external forces of change so that they may develop effective responses which secure or improve their position in the future. They scan in order to avoid surprises, identify threats and opportunities, gain competitive advantage, and improve long- and short-term planning. To the extent that an organization's ability to adapt to its outside environment is dependent on knowing and interpreting the external changes that are taking place, environmental scanning constitutes a primary mode of organizational learning. Environmental scanning includes both looking at information (viewing) and looking for information (searching). It could range from a casual conversation at the lunch table or a chance observation of an angry customer, to a formal market research program or a scenario planning exercise. A sound business practices in place at the Growing Home Southeast will allow clients to meet their b asic necessities of living in addition to being able to save for more costly nonessential items. In addition, the organization may implement an electronic time keeping system to better manage overtime and payroll costs of its employees.

A critical evaluation of central government urban regeneration Essay - 1

A critical evaluation of central government urban regeneration policies since the 1980s in Docklands, London - Essay Example The shift in the political scenario shall also not be advantageous, the future cabinet is expected to comprising of representatives from suburbs and South East, and therefore these representatives shall not share "same commitment to high levels of regeneration funding, particularly if economic circumstances demand a squeeze on public spending" (Cross, 1993). It is important that realistic approach shall be adopted to ensure optimum utilization of the available opportunities. It is important to initially settle the objectives into list of practical and non-practical items. It is evident that the current government "cannot guarantee to regenerate every town and every city in Britain that has fallen behind". Every location has its strategic and economic significance, and two cities at different locations shall never share similar significance, this is natural phenomenon and has contributed towards mass migration of the dwellers in the past. Britain has to face the truth that the locatio ns, which previously exhibited potential for investment in 19th century, are insignificant in the current economic and strategic setup. The general consensus among the legislatives exists that "port cities had an advantage in an era when exporting manufactured goods by sea was a vital source of prosperity; today the sea is a barrier to their potential for expansion and they are cut off from the main road transport routes" (Cross, 1993).

Racism In America :: essays research papers

There is surely no nation in the world that holds "racism" in greater horror than does the United States. Compared to other kinds of offenses, it is thought to be somehow more reprehensible. The press and public have become so used to tales of murder, rape, robbery, and arson, that any but the most spectacular crimes are shrugged off as part of the inevitable texture of American life. "Racism" is never shrugged off. For example, when a White Georgetown Law School student reported earlier this year that black students are not as qualified as White students, it set off a booming, national controversy about "racism." If the student had merely murdered someone he would have attracted far less attention and criticism. Racism is, indeed, the national obsession. Universities are on full alert for it, newspapers and politicians denounce it, churches preach against it, America is said to be racked with it, but just what is racism? Dictionaries are not much help in understanding what is meant by the word. They usually define it as the belief that one's own ethnic stock is superior to others, or as the belief that culture and behavior are rooted in race. When Americans speak of racism they mean a great deal more than this. Nevertheless, the dictionary definition of racism is a clue to understanding what Americans do mean. A peculiarly American meaning derives from the current dogma that all ethnic stocks are equal. Despite clear evidence to the contrary, all races have been declared to be equally talented and hard- working, and anyone who questions the dogma is thought to be not merely wrong but evil. The dogma has logical consequences that are profoundly important. If blacks, for example, are equal to Whites in every way, what accounts for their poverty, criminality, and dissipation? Since any theory of racial differences has been outlawed, the only possible explanation for black failure is White racism. And since blacks are markedly poor, crime-prone, and dissipated, America must be racked with pervasive racism. Nothing else could be keeping them in such an abject state. All public discourse on race today is locked into this rigid logic. Any explanation for black failure that does not depend on White wickedness threatens to veer off into the forbidden territory of racial differences. Thus, even if today's Whites can find in their hearts no desire to oppress blacks, yesterday's Whites must have oppressed them.

The Credit Rating Agencies, Their Role in the Financial Crisis?

End of Studies Thesis What is the role of the credit rating agencies, which part did they play in the recent Financial Crisis and how can their efficiency be improved? Thesis Supervisor – David Menival Emmeline Beauchamp – Cycle Franco- US – March 2013 Acknowledgments I would first like to thank RMS and especially the CESEM to have taught me a lot, helped me to grow and open up and gave me this incredible opportunity of studying two years in the United States. None of this phenomenal experience would have been possible without them.I would also like to thank Northeastern University for allowing me to discover a new culture and a different educating system. It also had a tremendous role in my future accomplishment and professional career. In addition, I would like to thank all the professors I had during these four years of studying, whether it is at CESEM or at Northeastern University. They made this journey even more profitable and enjoyable. I would also like t o thank David Menival, my thesis supervisor, who accepted to work with me on this project.Finally, I would like to thank my parents for always supporting my choices and being next to me when I needed them. They have been my guides and models in life and have always encouraged me to be better and push myself. Table of Content Introduction4 I. Credit Rating Agencies: Role and methods5 1) History5 2) Role and methods7 3) The Issuer-Payer model 9 II. The Credit Rating Agencies and the Financial Crisis: is the thermometer responsible for the fever? 12 1) Background of the financial Crisis12 2) Credit Rating Agency are not fully responsible†¦ 14 ) †¦But they could have done better17 III. What is next? 20 1) Lessons learned from the crisis 20 2) Regularization of the existing Credit Rating system 21 3) A new rating system23 4) Creation of new Credit Rating Agency24 Conclusion26 Exhibits27 Bibliography32 Introduction A credit rating agency is a company whose role is to evaluate th e default risk of a borrower, whether it is a private or public company or a State. Since 1909, when Moody’s emitted its first rating, the role of the Credit Rating Agencies has considerably evolved and the methods used have improved.Even though their ratings do not constitute buying or selling recommendations, they rapidly gained an almost â€Å"biblical authority†. Since the 1980’s, the credit rating agencies have, indeed, become a reference for investors that want to determine the creditworthiness of an entity. Their ratings influence investors’ behaviors and they are indirectly involved in the future of a State or company. After several economic meltdowns and the recent financial crisis, the three big Credit Rating Agencies have been the center of attention.Is their methodology appropriate to evaluate the creditworthiness of an entity? Does the issuer-payer model insure the best transparence? Their role and implications in the crisis have been meticul ously examined and their functioning system has been questioned. Although their role in the crisis in undeniable, are the only responsible of the crisis? The system was defaulting and the predictions of the credit rating agencies turned out to be wrong. Which modifications should we bring to the system to make it more transparent and efficient?These are the questions we will try to answer throughout this thesis. I. Credit ratings agencies: role and methods Credit Ratings agencies, entity still little known outside the financial communities two years ago, found themselves at the center of attention with the subprime crisis. If everyone more or less gets, now, familiar with what a credit rating agency is, people usually do not know what are the origins of this business, its rationale and its financing model. 1) HistoryThe influence of the three main credit rating agencies (Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings) was build step by step since their inception, in the early 1900’s. Historically, the ratings issued by the agencies did not have more value than the ones given by analysts or economic experts. They acquired this particular status when legislators and regulators attributed them a bigger place in their systems. The development of railroads companies marked the origin of these â€Å"Big Three†. These railroad companies were indeed fluctuating and needed nvestments to set up their infrastructures. As investors were concerned and questioned their capacity to reimburse their debts, Henry Varnum Poor published, in 1860, some financial information regarding the creditworthiness of those companies in order to help investors make their decision. Later on, in 1900, John Moody would also start publishing economic data on these companies and finally, in 1909, J. Moody gave his first ratings about railroad companies in â€Å"Moody's Analyses of Railroad Investments† by attributing a letter to each of them; the credit rating was born.This system was progressively adopted by others credit rating agencies such as Fitch Publishing Company, founded in 1913 by John Knowles Fitch, which would later be known as Fitch Ratings. Finally, Less than thirty years later, the credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s is created after the merger of the Standard’s Statistic Bureau and the Poor’s Publishing Company. The development of the ratings is stimulated by several factors. First, its goal is to offer a service for investors by providing useful information that will help them in their decision-making process.In addition, the relative large size of the American territory discourage investors to search for information, they would rather pay for it than waste time looking for it. Moreover, the repercussions of the 1929 financial crisis and the consequences of the World War II, giving supremacy to the Economy of the United States, also favored the expansion of the concept of rating. In 1970, after the ba nkruptcy of Penn Central Railroad, the first doubts regarding the independence of the credit rating agencies appeared. This was the first time that the reliability and seriousness of the ratings were questioned.In order to reestablish the value of the ratings, the SEC (Securities Exchange Commission) created, in 1975, the â€Å"Nationally Recognized Statistical Rating Organization† (NRSRO) designation. The goal was to standardize and formalize the ratings regarding brokerage firms and banks with their capital ratios. At that time, seven agencies obtained the NRSRO designation. In 1990, after several new mergers, the number of NRSRO was only of three: Moody’s investor service, Standard and Poor’s and Fitch Ratings. In 2003, the Canadian agency Dominion Bond Ratings service Ltd also ained the status of NRSRO, followed by A. M Best Company in 2005. In June 2003, after the disorders caused by the bankruptcy of the company Enron, the regulation of the credit rating a gencies and their NRSRO status needed to be examined. Multiple reports on the role played by the agencies in this case were published. Even though investors lost faith in them, they all agreed that they should keep the NRSRO status. In 2006, after years of critics toward the credit rating agencies, the functioning rules of the NRSROs were modified and the Credit Rating Agency Reform Act was promulgated.The objective was to regulate the internal decision process of the credit rating agencies while forbidding the SEC to control the rating system of NRSROs. Right after, in 2007, three more companies were added to the list of NRSROs: Japan Credit Rating Ltd, Rating & Investment Information Inc. and Egan-Jones Rating Company. Since April 2011, the list of agencies that received the NRSRO status counts ten names (See Exhibit 1, page 27). Finally, in July 2010, the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act reinforced the control over the ratings’ practices.Thi s included a reduction of the conflicts of interest regarding the ratings of structured products and decreased dependence on ratings. It also allowed investors to sue a credit rating agency in case of fake or reckless rating. For decades, the three main agencies, Moody’s, Standard and Poor’s and Fitch Ratings, have been controlling the market, as high barriers to enter exist. The major ones are the importance of the reputation and the investors’ confidence in their ratings. Since their creation, these agencies have distinguished themselves with a particular role and specific methods. ) Role and Methods The Credit Rating Agencies evaluate the creditworthiness of debtors. Ratings can concern a company as well as a particular emission or securitization or any financial debt. They are usually solicited by the debt issuer but can also be attributed, if non-requested, after collecting public information. Credit Rating Agencies enjoyed a good reputation and an essentia l role in the financing of economies. Over time, regulators, for practical reasons, tried more and more to impose the use of the notation in the investors’ financing.This long-term trend follows upon the systematic financing by the market, whether it is in a simple formulation taking the shape of debenture or assimilated loans or new products where the risk of defect is difficult to comprehend because it is diffuse in complex financing methods such as the securitizations. Credit Rating Agencies have the role of processing the information for financial markets. They synthesize the information for market needs and the investors seemed to excessively grant their confidence to this information.Investors pay close attention to any modifications in ratings or to any entities placed â€Å"under observation†. The ratings issued by the credit rating agencies have a trustworthy value. Since investors usually do not take the time to look for information regarding a company or a S tate, they based their investment choices upon the rating given by the credit rating agencies. Therefore, the role of the credit rating agencies is essential. Basically, these agencies summarize all information available about a company or State and turn it into a rating that will then influence the future of an entity.However, it is necessary to underline that the ratings given are not buying or selling recommendations, they are only an evaluation of the creditworthiness of an entity, at a defined time, and statically calculated. Next to this informative participation, credit rating agencies contribute to the management of portfolios by giving advice to the investors via the medium-term orientations emitted with the rating. If a company tries to finance itself, the received grading will be determining for the conditions of the operation.Whether it is by financing through banks or by issuing bonds on the market, the more the grade will be raised, the more the company will be able to find cheap funds at low interest rates. On the other hand, a bad grade will imply higher interest rates and difficulties to find financing. The difference of levels between both interest rates will constitute the risk premium. This problem becomes particularly important for companies or States located within the â€Å"speculative† category. Major institutional investors do not want, indeed, to take the risk and, therefore, do not invest on these kinds of values. However, the rating is ot fixed and fluctuates throughout the life of the bonds. A decrease of the rating can lower the price of the bond. Likewise, a raise of the rating can be associated to an increased price of the bond. In order to correctly determine the default risk, Credit Rating Agencies use diverse quantitative and qualitative criteria that they translate into a grade. Credit Rating Agencies distinguish two types of ratings: short and long-term; the traditional rating that applies to loans emitted on the mar ket and the reference rating that measures the risk of counterparty for the investor represented by this issuer.When evaluating the financial risk, credit rating agencies first take into consideration purely financial numbers such as the profitability, the return on investment, the level of cash flows and debt, the financial flexibility and the liquidity. More and more, the agencies integrate non-quantitative elements such as the governance, the social responsibility of the company and its strategy. It is also necessary to highlight the fact that the rating is usually associated with medium-term orientation, allowing to better estimate the future trend regarding the quality of the issuer.In some cases, a borrower can be placed â€Å"under observation†. The main steps in a company’s life (mergers, acquisitions, big investments†¦) are indeed, likely to influence and modify their structure. Credit rating agencies, subject to preserving the confidentiality of the rece ived information and avoiding cases of insider trading, can have insider information on the financial state and the future prospects of the analyzed issuer, while reducing the cost of collection and data processing. They distinguish themselves from financial analysts, who, in principle, only have access to the public information.Even if they can benefit from insider information on behalf of issuers, they are dependent on the information provided by these issuers. Each Credit Rating Agency possesses its own rating system. In broad outline, grades are established from A to D with intermediary levels. Thus, the best grade is AAA, then AA and A for Standard and Poor’s or Aa, A, etc. for Moody’s. In addition, we can also find intermediate ratings; a â€Å"+† or a â€Å"-â€Å" but also a â€Å"1† or a â€Å"2† can indeed be added to the grade (e. g. AA+, A-, Aa2, etc. ).This allows a better and more precise classification of borrowers. These different ratings can be divided in two groups: the first category, â€Å"High Grade† includes all ratings between AAA and BBB and the second category, also known as â€Å"speculative†, for inferior grades. (See Exhibit 2, page 28) The biggest advantage of this system is to provide information at low costs for potential investors. Thanks to an easily understandable grade, but incorporating a vast amount of information, investors can quickly have an idea of the creditworthiness of a borrower.The ratings issued by these agencies are a more and more useful tool in the decision-making process of investors looking for relevant information. Current regulation obliges them to certify published information. As we have previously seen with the United States or Greece, the market strongly reacts and sometimes irrationally to any modification of a rating or to a simple announcement of a hypothetical revision. Credit Rating agencies have a real influence on markets. The impact of their dec ision on issuers and investors is decisive.On the contrary, an excessive reaction was completely predictable in front of their incapacity to forecast the financial crises of these last decades. 3) The issuer-payer model For more than half a century, investors that paid to obtain financial information about loan issuers financed the credit rating agencies. Thus, companies, local communities, States were given a rating, without asking for one or without their consents, but to answer to requests from bankers or investors that were holding these funds.Naturally, these â€Å"non-requested† ratings were only based on public information concerning such or such company. The Credit Rating Agencies sold their publications to bankers and capital holders who were looking for potential adequate investments. In addition to selling these â€Å"manuals†, the credit rating agencies could also offer others services to investors (weekly information about financial results of rated compan ies, actualization of the ratings, recommendations and advices of purchase and/or sell).However, the agencies will lose some profits as some investors managed to have the information and the manuals without paying for them. As from the beginning of the 1970s, Credit Rating Agencies started to charge their services to the issuers of bonded debt. This is the issuer-payer model. These issuers of debt (Companies or communities looking for investment) began to more and more directly solicit the agencies in order to obtain a rating. They believed that this rating would reassure investors during a slowdown of economic growth.Thus, from now on, it is more often the issuers of debts that will request a rating from the credit rating agencies to get an evaluation from them that would allow them to access to credit. This approach contributed widely to consolidate the place of the Credit Rating agencies and â€Å"to legitimize† their intervention. In fact, this translates well a swing of the balance of power between those who look for funds to invest in industrial projects and those who hold funds, while waiting for the best yield at the slightest risk.In a world highly regulated by finance, where pensioners and holders of capital are in a strong position, and where industrial and direct investors are in a position of requestors, it is now, more often, issuers who wish to borrow and will ask to be noted, that will pay the credit rating agencies for their services. This shift from an investor-payer model to an issuer-payer model compromised the independence of the credit rating agencies. In fact, in 2011, only 10% of the revenue of the agencies came from funds’ holders who wanted to know more about the validity, the risk and the potential profitability of an investment.From now on, the ones looking for capital are the ones financing 90% the credit rating agencies. The â€Å"issuer-payer† model strongly modifies the situation of the credit rating agencie s. In this situation, the rating agency is used, and paid, by the market player who wishes to be noted to then be able to hope to obtain capital on â€Å"financial markets†. The question of the independence of the agency in its rating process is then very directly put: the rating agency will be inclined to note well a company which pays her to then try to obtain capital in good conditions on behalf of miscellaneous â€Å"investors†.However, the market has faith in this independence since a credit rating agency has to protect its reputation, and thus an agency could not take the risk of over evaluating one of its customers by fear of losing its credibility and thus all business. Credit Rating Agencies seem, indeed, more and more subjected to conflicts of interests, which decrease their reliability. The issuers pay the agencies to be noted, while credit rating agencies need the revenues from these same issuers. Besides, more and more often, the credit rating agencies mix two activities: consulting and rating.Therefore, in addition to evaluating a company, an agency also advises on current operations. A study for the SEC in 2008 revealed that some analysts from certain agencies participated in meetings between investors and issuers in which commission and rating were fixed. These conflict of interest generated criticisms and accusations against credit rating agencies and especially during the recent financial crisis. As the credit rating agencies were essential and indispensable to any players on the market that wanted either to invest or to find capital, they were at the heart of the upheaval.II. The Credit Rating Agencies and the Financial Crisis: is the thermometer responsible for the fever? In order to determine the responsibility that the credit rating agencies have in the financial crisis of 2008, it is necessary to understand how the crisis happened, which events punctuated it and what has been the behavior of the rating agencies throughout t he crisis. 1) Background of the Financial Crisis Everything started when the American housing market suddenly collapsed after a steady rise in the 2000 years.To finance their consumption and acquisition of a house, American households did not hesitate to get into very high debts. The market was booming so there was a trust in the ability to get its money back with a substantial profit. As counterparty, they pawn their properties. This was a guaranty for banks to be paid because if the borrower could not reimburse what he owed, his property would be sold to honor his debt. When the phenomenon grows and affects a large number of households, the sale of their property causes the collapse of the value of the property.The downturn of the housing market was reinforced by the subprime system. Since 2002, the American Federal Reserve, which encouraged easy credit to boost the economy, allowed millions of households to become homeowners thanks to premium loans called subprime, with variable interest rates that can reach 18% after three years. These interest rates are fixed according to the value of the property; the greater the value, the lower the rate and vice versa. That is what happened when the housing market collapsed in the United States in the beginning of 2007.Households, lacking of ways to reimburse their debts to lenders, have caused the bankruptcy of several credit institutions that could not repay themselves since even when taking on the property, this one has a lower value than initially. Finally, banks were also touched by this phenomenon. They have indeed been numerous to invest in these lending institutions. Nevertheless, today, invested funds are gone. In order to compensate these losses on the housing market, banks were forced to sell their shares, leading to a decrease of their values on the financial markets.The crisis quickly expanded in Europe, where major European banks such as Dexia in France and Benelux or IKB in Germany lost a fair part of th eir investments. Besides, the bankruptcy of several European banks led to a confidence crisis on European financial markets. Banks have doubts about each other’s contamination by the subprime crisis and therefore, to be cautious, refused to lend money. Since international banks are linked to each other through financial agreements, the crisis rapidly extended, to reach Asia during the summer 2007.Only one solution seemed conceivable for banking institutions to face this lack of liquidity: sell their shares and bonds. This fast and quick intervention caused a sharp drop in stock value and all the European stock markets were affected (See Exhibits 3 and 4, page 29-30). In order to appease the crisis on the markets but also to bail out banks, the American Federal Reserve (FED) and the Central European Bank (CEB) decided to inject liquidity in the monetary system, hoping to gain back the confidence of investors to help stabilize the situation.On 9 August 2007, the CEB acted first by making available 94. 8 billion euros to banks, followed shortly by the FED which injected $24 billion to appease the spirits of investors. However, markets initially misinterpreted the message, considering their involvement as a sign of weakness. The next day, the CEB injected again 61 billion euros and the FED, $35 billion, but the markets felt down again. Finally, on August 13, 2007, the same action was repeated and the monetary market as well as stock markets around the world kept their heads above water.While it seemed like the financial crisis was faded away at the end of 2007, a second wave of crisis appeared from the banking sector at the beginning of 2008. This was due to the creation of new products such as residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS), Asset-backed Securities (ABS). In fact, credit risk, such as subprime mortgages, were pooled and backed by other assets, more or less risky, in Collateralized Debt Obligations (CDO) (See Exhibit 5, pages 31). These clust ers of scattered debts were then sold on the stock exchange by the issuer, like shares of a company could be given up.This results in the transfer of the risk of non-payment from issuers of mortgages to financial institutions: in particular banks, major consumers of CDO. In order to invest on the CDO market, some financial organisms went even further and created Structured Investment Vehicles (SIV) that did not have to respect the usual rules of prudence of the banking system. This amplified the risks taken and losses impacted on the performance of the bank. Other new products were also created such as Credit Default Swap (CDS), an insurance contract between two entities against a risk faced by one of two entities, such as the non-payment of a debt.The price of the CDS reflects the confidence in a particular issuer of a debt and is the basis for determining the value of the product of the debt. The crisis took a new dimension on September 15, 2008 with the bankruptcy of Lehman Broth ers and AIG (narrowly saved by the Fed), as well as several American and European banks (HBOS in United Kingdom, Fortis in Europe, Dexia in France and Belgium, etc. ). This international and financial crisis still has repercussions on today’s stock markets and the end of the tunnel seems far away. The question raised here is the role played by the Credit Rating agencies in the crisis.Are they the only ones to blame for everything that happened? Are the actions intended by the rating agencies responsible for the crisis? 2) The credit Rating Agencies are not fully responsible†¦ Ever since the crisis, the credit rating agencies have been easy targets to blame for what happened in 2007 and the years after. Effectively they did not anticipate the downturn of the market, they continued to attribute good rating to banking institutions already hurt by the crisis with an increasing book of bad loans or bad papers that banks will have to deleverage.Many criticisms have been emitte d about toward them. However, it is important to point out that they are not the ones and only responsible for what happened. They did not have power over a lot of factors that went wrong, and for that they cannot be the only to take the fault in the financial crisis. The thermometer could not be responsible for the fever. First of all, they are not responsible for the bankers or mortgage brokers who gave loans unwisely. These institutions lacked of common sense and thinking when offering credits.Banks and managers perfectly knew that unemployed borrowers would never be able to reimburse their mortgages. They have, indeed, disproportionately opened the gates of credit by taking for guarantee, when they did take some, the increase of real estate prices or their trust in the growth of the economy. They thought that they could make benefits if the debtor did not pay, as they believed that they could force the sale of the house for a higher price. However, real estate prices always end up going down and the economy is fluctuating.In an attempt to reduce the risk of these new kinds of loans, banks used securitization; they transformed these loans and resold them on the stock market. Therefore, mortgages securitizers are also to blame. Some companies such as Washington Mutual, Morgan Stanley or Bank of America were mortgages originators as well as mortgage securitizers, other like Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers and Bears Stearns bought mortgages directly to subprime lenders and pooled them together to resell them to investors. However, as soon as a debtor was not able to pay back his mortgages, the security became toxic and had no more value.Nevertheless, this was not the last step. Some banks would buy and bundled mortgage backed-securities into collateralized debt obligations, composed of different levels of risk. The creators of these new financial products are also responsible for the crisis. They bet against these risky CDOs by using credit default swap. (See e xhibit 5) Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs) could also be blame for what happened. They indeed, control the mortgage market. When a bank or a mortgage broker wanted to take off his books a loan, it could sell it to a GSE, which led to a higher number of mortgages.Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are the two major GSEs. Alone, they own or guarantee half of the current mortgages. With their â€Å"government status†, investors can buy those bonds while asking for a low interest rate in return, as federal government bonds have the safest credit rating in the world. As long as debtors paid back their mortgages, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac would be able to pay their creditors too. However, as these loans where often given out, even to people we knew could not reimburse, GSEs had to assume the risk. Therefore, we could also say that investors could be blamed for the role they played.They bought and invest in financial products they did not know about. They should have conducted resea rches about what they were purchasing and should have known these were subprime and meant a higher risk of non-payment. However, we have to see the bigger picture. At that time, banks received pressure from higher instances to encourage homeownership and so, to grant loans to the poorest population. The government wanted households with a less comfortable life to be able to buy their own house. The pressure that was put on the banks â€Å"forced† them to give mortgages to debtors that would ikely not pay back. This being said, borrowers are also responsible for contracting loans that they pertinently knew they could not afford. Moreover, the credit rating agencies are also not responsible for the debt of the countries. They have often been accused to do be the reason for the deficit of some countries such as Greece. Nevertheless, Greece has always had a huge deficit. They never had a break-even budget in 150 years, and governments from left to right parties systematically lai d about the finance of the country.In addition, the national sport is not the Greco/Roman wrestling or the Marathon but how to avoid paying taxes; nothing in which the rating agencies were involved. Furthermore, regulators could have also done a better job to prevent the crisis. In the United States, several regulators exist and each of them has a specific area of expertise. The regulation of the banking sector is shared between the Federal Reserve (Fed), the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (which guarantees the deposits of bank customers) and the Office of the Thrift Supervision (OTS).There is also The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that is responsible for the supervision of stock exchanges. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority provides the regulation of brokerage activities. Finally, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) insures the regulation of futures and options markets. This various regulato rs could have acted to appease the situation. The SEC could have, indeed, regulate lending practices at banks and force them to keep more capital reserves in case of losses.The Federal Reserve could have contained the housing bubble by setting safer mortgages lending standards, which it failed to do and especially when Alan Greenspan who was the head of the FED, refused to improve the examination of the subprime mortgage market. Finally, according to the Financial Crisis Inquiry Report, executives in the main investment banks did not hold enough capital to be fully protected against losses. Some companies, such as Lehman brothers or Citigroup would just hide bad investments off their books.It is mainly a problem related to the liquidity crisis that led to the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers. Lehman Brothers, indeed, financed itself on the short-term and lend on the long-term. When the source of the financing dried up (banks did not trust each others by fear of not being paid off), Leh man found himself stuck and was enabled to face its commitments. If the credit rating agencies were not responsible for the mortgage originators or securitizers, the creation of the CDO, the regulators or the executives of the investment banks, they surely played a tremendous role in the crisis ) †¦But they could have done better The credit rating agencies are responsible for a lot in the financial crisis. Several aspects of their business as well as the actions they have done have been pointed out as the main cause of the crisis. First of all, the pertinence of their business model was questioned, among others the oligopolistic situation of the market and the conflict of interest created by the issuer-payer model. The â€Å"Big Three† (Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s and Fitch Ratings) generate 95% of the $6 billion market that the rating business represents.These three agencies dominate the market and adopt similar methodologies and practices. The business mod el of the rating agencies establishes itself on the independence and the credibility granted by the financial markets and the authorities of supervision. That is why, in the absence of statutory reforms and / or of the desertion of numerous customers, the leadership of the â€Å"Big Three† will be maintained, protected by strong barriers of entry (reforms difficult to set up and loyalty of issuers often connected to the heaviness of the rating process).Besides, the oligopolistic situation is strengthened by a consolidation, on the initiative and thus for the benefit of the â€Å"Big Three†. So, Fitch acquired in June 2000 the fourth American rating agency, Duff and Phelps, and in December 2000 Thomson BankWatch. At the beginning of 2006, Fimalac gave up 20 % of Fitch Group (who, herself, holds Fitch Ratings, Fitch Training and Algorithmics, this last company having been acquired in 2005) to Hearst Corporation. Likewise, the French subsidiary of Standard & Poor’s acquired ADEF (Agency of Financial Evaluation).Another reason why the credit rating agencies played an important role in the financial crisis is because of the conflicts of interest they were facing with the issuers. If some say that these conflicts of interest were of minor importance since there are always conflicts of interest in relationships, in that case, it had serious consequences on the global economy, as they are one of the causes of the subprime crisis in 2008. It is, indeed, the issuer that pays the rating agency so that this one estimates its capacity to pay off its debt.It is thus relevant to wonder about the partiality and the objectivity of the rating agencies which find themselves â€Å"at the same time judge and judged† and which can be inclined to note well its customers to keep their market share. Besides, the transparency that the rating agencies show in their methodologies and during their changes of ratings is unreliable as far as these sudden reversal s seemed to have destabilized the markets. The three major credit rating agencies also contribute to worsen the financial crisis by their practices. They were, indeed, a key factor in the financial meltdown.They attributed a rating to every products offered on the stock market. Even mortgage-related securities received a good grade, which made it easier to market and sell them. As we have seen previously, the ratings that they gave had an almost â€Å"biblical authority†, so investors trusted the rating agencies to be fair and to give relevant grade to each product and did not conduct further investigation regarding their investment. Credit Rating Agencies were necessary to the mortgage-backed securities market; each actor in the process needed them: The issuers, to approve the structure of their deal – The banks, to determine what capital to hold – The investors, to know what to buy Since 1970, when the credit rating agencies got the status of NRSRO, the SEC de cided to base the capital requirements for banks on the grades given by the rating agencies. This is also included into the banking capital regulations as the recourse rule, which allows banks to hold less capital for higher-rated securities. The SEC also prevented money market funds to buy securities that did not receive ratings from at least two NRSROs.Without these good ratings, banks would not have been able to place these financial products so easily onto financial markets, and the investors would have never bought them. Theirs ratings helped the market to go up rapidly and their downgrades between 2007 and 2008 wreaked havoc across markets and firms. These ratings, especially the ones for the mortgage-backed securities, appeared to have been very optimistic. But what we could observe, throughout the crisis, is the gregarious reflex of the credit rating agencies.They usually agreed on the ratings and when one of them downgraded a security, a company or even a State, the others would usually follow and did the same thing. As we have seen, the Credit Rating Agencies have indeed played an important role in the financial crisis. However, they are not the only one to blame. Thus, we can say that the thermometer is not responsible for the crisis but it could have given a better temperature of the situation. III. What is next? As we discussed, the credit rating agencies have been criticized a lot during the crisis and some flaws of them have been pointed out.In order to improve their efficiency, it is important to understand what we have learned from the crisis and then propose a better regulation or an alternative to the Big Three. 1) Lessons learned from the Financial Crisis The first lesson learned from the crisis is the impact of the globalization of financial markets. This has linked countries together in a greater extent than they were before. That is why, in today’s economy, any crisis that hits a main country or group of countries will have reperc ussion on all other countries. The financial crisis of 2008, started in the United States with the subprime bubble.Then it grew bigger and affected the rest of the world almost immediately compared to the 1929 crisis which also had worldwide impact but more gradually. We have to keep into consideration this new factor and realize that globalization plays an important role in the current worldwide economy. In addition, a country and its financial system need to be better prepared to face the crisis, in order to limit economic and financial damages. This means having a sound and well-regulated environment, keeping its inflation rate low, its exchange rate flexible, and its debt position sustainable.By doing that, a country would limit its vulnerability in front of any financial crisis. Moreover, the country should use fiscal and monetary policies to be able react quickly in case of external shocks. Another lesson learned is the question of the financial supervision. The global crisis is a crisis of confidence, which must impose rules on investment in the financial market, such as CDS (Credit Default Swaps) and short-selling of securities, clearing of OTC derivatives to reduce risks, CSD (Central settlement and Depository) regulation to protect investors and also Hedge Funds transparency.In macroeconomics, monitoring means imposing laws and rules on a structure with what is called the invisible hand. In our case, the invisible hand is the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund and the States, which have full power to intervene and better regulate transactions in the financial markets. This crisis also revealed some weaknesses regarding risk planning. Research based on various methods, including country case studies, confirmed that the more the planning is important, the more the quality of the financial services of a country is raised and more the financial intermediation is efficient.The planning of the risks led a certain number of countries to revise t heir financial structures to adapt itself to the global economic transformations. Finally, we can say that every good thing comes to an end, positive times do not last forever and the end is most likely going to be painful. In today’s financial system and global economy, we cannot avoid financial crisis, we can just hope that enough efforts will be done to improve our financial system and to limit the impacts of future crisis on our economy.If we focus on Credit Rating Agencies, to have a sound environment, it is worth considering a better regularization of our existing Credit Rating system, a new and improved rating system or the promotion of totally new credit rating agencies. 2) Regularization of our existing Credit rating system After the dysfunction of our system translated for instance into the collapse of Lehman Brothers, the disappearance of famous institutions such as Bear Sterns or Merrill Lynch, G7 members stressed the financial industry to improve its functioning mode and enhance the regulation.Several critics have indeed been directed to the credit rating agencies regarding the methodologies used by those agencies (including the growing place of the so-called political factors), the lack of transparency of their decisions, the rudimentary explanation accompanying the changes in notation, the moments selected to realize their announcements of ratings and finally, the potential conflicts of interest. All these aspects need to be taken into consideration when aiming to regulate the rating agencies. Various reform proposals have been recommended.Among them, you find some proposing the suppression of the government’s influence over this industry, or even the creation of a completely government-sponsored rating entity. However, the final goal is the accuracy of the credit rating. The first main step toward a better regulation happened in 2006, when a new section to the Securities Exchange Act has been added. The objective was to â€Å"imp rove rating quality for the protection of investors and in the public interest by fostering accountability, transparency, and competition in the credit rating industry† (ANNUAL SEC REPORT, supra note 22, at 16).The market is an oligopoly; the Big Three set the tone for the rest of the industry. Encouraging competition should give more choices to investors, at a lower cost and with better quality ratings. Several rules were added along the way, especially in 2009, when the SEC’s new rule addressed conflicts of interest, fostered competition and required detailed disclosure. For example, a NRSRO could not anymore issue a rating in which it had advised the bank or the issuer for the structure of the product.Another change emerged from the Dodd-Frank Act, in 2010, where a whole chapter has been dedicated to the rating agencies: â€Å"improvements to the regulation of the Credit Rating Agencies†. The Dodd-Frank Act qualified the agencies as â€Å"gatekeepers† f or the debt market and that is why they needed â€Å"public oversight and accountability†. This meant reducing the investors’ reliance on ratings by limiting references to NRSRO ratings from rules, increasing the liability exposure, maintaining and informing on the structure of the ratings, as well as filing control reports yearly.However, both of these new reforms showed weaknesses, particularly in addressing the conflicts interest coming from the issuer-payer model, or the oligopoly. As mentioned before, several proposals would appear more efficient to answer these problems. The first proposal would be the elimination of the NRSRO status, which would remove any regulatory reliance on the ratings. This would also drive prices down as there would be an increasing competition, but it would also improve the rating quality and the innovation.Nevertheless, this proposal would lead to a total revision of the entire bank regulatory system and could also increase the pressure to satisfy issuers. The second proposal was to create a totally government-sponsored rating industry. This would make the rating a public good, eliminating any conflicts of interest due to the issuer-payer model. Although appealing because it resolves one of the main critics emitted during the financial crisis, it does not say who is going to pay for the subsidization.Finally, another more recent proposal called â€Å"disclose or disgorge† asks for the agencies to disclose the quality of the ratings they give, which means disclose to the public when a rating is â€Å"low quality† or disgorge benefits made with the rating. However, charging penalties would increase the barriers of entry on this market and discourage potential NRSROs. The rating business faces two major problems, the oligopolistic situation of the market that is being maintained by an increased regulation that secures the Big Three, and the issuer-payer model that fosters the conflicts of interest.Even though several reform proposals have been suggested, none appears to be totally conceivable. 3) A new rating system We have seen that a lot of reform proposals exist in order to enhance and increase regulation of the rating system. These proposals, indeed, reveal that some aspects of this business need to be improved. Eventually, a new rating system is worth considering. First of all, we have realized already touch based, throughout this analysis that the business model of the credit rating agencies needs to be modified, especially the issuer-payer model.The fact that the issuer is the one that pay the agencies for their ratings creates a conflict of interest that has to go away to insure an accurate and objective rating. In order to solve this issue, a new model is necessary. A possible idea to get there would be to make, not the issuer, but the investors (the ones that want to know the rating of a company or an entity) to finance the credit rating agencies. It is indeed them that need to know the rating of an entity, so it would be fair for them to pay in order to know what they are investing in.This would solved the problems related to the conflict of interest as rating agencies will not be tempted to give a good grade just to satisfy the client and avoid loosing profits. This was actually the model that existed before 1970, when the issuer-payer model was established. The shift to a model investor-payer would constitute a deep change for the whole rating industry but would eliminate the conflicts of interest. Another change that would be conceivable would be to set up a â€Å"rating planning†. The credit rating agencies should emit their grading at a known rhythm.Therefore, companies or States would know when they would be rated. For example, every January 1st, they could give their ratings for all entities. This would avoid sudden downgrades as we saw during the crisis, where rating agencies lowered the rating of a company right before it went bank rupt. Furthermore, to improve the accuracy of the ratings, a distinction between the rating of a company and a State should be made. In fact, Credit rating agencies do not evaluate the same thing when rating a country or a firm.That is why different ratings should be given according to the nature of the entity. Finally, this new rating system should have a better transparency of ratings. As this has often been reproach to the agencies, it is clear that we need to improve it. In order to get more transparency in the ratings, the credit rating agencies should be forced to make public some criteria that contributed to the rating process. In addition, when an entity is downgraded, there is ever a clear explanation.An explicit and standard comment should go along with the new ratings to explain the cause of the downgrade or upgrade. All these improvements should be made to obtain a more transparent and accurate rating. These changes could lead to more efficient and regular ratings where conflicts of interest would be inexistent and where the distinction between entities would improve the relevance of the ratings. 4) Creation of a new credit rating agency Finally, another solution that arises would be the creation of a new rating agency.This proposition is particularly discussed in Europe. The arguments called in favor of the creation of a European rating agency are multiple. It would be a question, first of all, of introducing more competition into a sector that is today dominated by three major actors. Standard and Poor's, Moody’s and Fitch Ratings are indeed sharing more than 90 % of the market, a situation which confers to the members of this â€Å"Big Three† a tremendous capacity of influence. To create a new rating agency would be a way of having a bigger diversity of points of view.The trust that would be granted by the investors to a new European agency would depend however on its capacity to avoid the criticism sent to â€Å"Big Three† in terms of independence and conflict of interest. It would also be necessary to specify the status of the new agency: a public or a private organization? A public rating agency could face the mistrust of the investors, who could doubt its independence towards public authorities and States, which it would have the mission to evaluate. On the other hand, a private agency would look like a non-profit foundation.The rating agency would be financed by the investors who would use its notations, and not by the entities emitting the financial products, which would allow guaranteeing its independence. Nevertheless, the future prospects of such a structure remain uncertain: to what extent would it be able to impose itself in front of â€Å"Big Three†, in a sector where the experience and the reputation of the institution play a determining role? In addition, a history of ratings would be necessary to evaluate the evolution of an entity and a strict method is mandatory for accurate rat ing.A new rating agency would not be able to have all of these factors before several years. To conclude, it is not easy to find the best solution to improve the current rating methods. Different regulations have been tried, all presenting good points but also flaws. However, what we need to enhance is clear: better transparency, a more accurate rating and a suppression of the conflicts of interest. Conclusion The role of the credit rating agencies in today’s economy is crucial. They evaluate the creditworthiness of an entity, influencing investors and interest rates.However, during the crisis, their role has been criticized. Several factors can explain their controversial position. The oligopolistic situation of the market, their supposedly trustworthy evaluations given by their NRSRO status, as well as the conflicts of interest coming from their issuer-payer model are the main causes of the critics emitted toward them. Recently, the American justice even pressed charges aga inst the rating agencies for their role in the crisis and asked for five billion dollars. Nevertheless, even if the credit rating agencies are the ideal responsible, they are not the only ones to blame.Now that the crisis revealed the different flaws of their system, we can only improve them going forward. Several regulations have already been approved and others are still under consideration. Other ideas to enhance the rating system include a new financing model, by perhaps considering going back to the investor-payer model, a better transparency of their rating, by showing the criteria used for their ratings, and a distinction between a company or a security and a State, which are two completely different entities.Lastly, we can wonder if the Credit Rating agencies still have as much influence as they used to. For instance, when downgrading both the United States and France, the repercussions were minors even nonexistent. The lost of their triple A did not bring the interest rates up as it should have, since today the interest rates are historically low in both these countries. Exhibits Exhibit 1 – Credit Rating Agencies with the NRSRO designation Exhibits Exhibit 2 – Rating systems of the Big Three Source: â€Å"Credit rating – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.   Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. N. p. , 7 Mar. 2013. Web. 13 Mar. 2013. ;http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Credit_rating;. Exhibits Exhibit 3 – Important facts about the crisis Exhibits Exhibit 4 – Evolution of market indexes from August 9 to 16, 2007 Index| Evolution| Dax (Germany)| -4,42%| Dow Jones (USA)| -5,95%| Nasdaq (USA)| -6,16%| FTSE 100 (United Kingdom)| –  8,37 %| CAC 40 (France)| -8,42%| Nikkei (Japan)| -10,3%| Exhibits Exhibit 5 – Residential Mortgage-backed securities These tranches were often purchased by CDOs These tranches were often purchased by CDOsSource: The financial crisis inquiry report: final report of the National Commis sion on the Causes of the Financial and Economic Crisis in the United States. Official government ed. Washington, DC: Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission :, 2011. Print Bibliography * Dupuy, Claude . â€Å"La crise financiere 2007-2008 – Les raisons du desordre mondial – C†¦. † francetv education – la plateforme des parents, eleves et enseignants. N. p. , n. d. 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