The Theory Of Mind ( Tom ) - 1987 Words

Theory of mind (ToM) is the ability to differentiate one’s own mental state from others and therefore, influence the behaviour accordingly. Mental states comprise of the individual’s desires, beliefs and intentions. ToM is considered to be a milestone in psychosocial development as pre-schoolers at the age of 4 or 5 tend to be able to recognise that not everyone perceive the same reality as they do (Wellman, Cross Watson, 2001). This is known as false-belief and is an important skill in comprehending and predicting people’s emotions and actions to construct a meaningful relationship. Many have argued that ToM coincides with language acquisition providing a mechanism to apprehend mental states within one’s cognition (Karmiloff-Smith,†¦show more content†¦That is, whether a deaf child was from a deaf family or normally hearing, and thus the immersion of the natural language leading to a successful ToM maturation. Moreover, a cochlear implant can im prove a hearing impaired child’s communication skills, which benefits social functioning, but still lag considerably behind in ToM compared to normally hearing peers. The outcomes of a delayed ToM do not occur in a particular order nor should they be considered as distinct features. Rather, the consequences are intertwined whereby one particular aspect can affect the other. For a deaf child, their natural language is signing (Mayer Leigh, 2010). Auslan or other variations of signing is instinctive to a deaf individual because it is the language that they can form coherent sentences and explicit semantics to engage in a discourse. Although language is predominately symbols rather than verbal or written compared to a deaf child’s normally hearing peers, it still allows the child to apprehend mental states in their cognition and conceive others around. Therefore, studies have shown that these children can do just as well, or even better, on false belief tests than hear ing children (Marschark Clark, 1998). In other words, despite being diagnosed as deaf or hard of hearing, ‘native signers’ typically show no delayed ToM and the implication is higher control of behaviours, or executive functioning, and

Descriptive Essay - Original Writing - 1544 Words

As I opened my eyes I saw nothing but darkness. It surrounded me, comforted me, and urged me to go back to sleep. Then, I heard my Dad’s voice cutting through the pitch black. â€Å"Are you still going?† he asked. I rolled over and let out a sleepy moan. He asked again, â€Å"Do you still want to go?† I nodded my head and attempted to arouse my brain. â€Å"Alright, if you are sure you want to.† he mumbled apprehensively as he walked out of my room. I closed my eyes and began to drift back to sleep. I caught myself drifting and threw off the mountain of covers I was buried under. The cool air of my room hit me and woke me instantly. My feet hit the ice cold floor and goose bumps appeared instantly on my skin. It was 5:00 a.m. on December†¦show more content†¦Then, slowly, I reached for the cold, metal handle and opened the door The small house was silent, except for the soft, religious music pouring out of the CD player which sat next to my Grandma’s bed. The house seemed plain; there was not a single decoration in sight. There were six people sitting in the tiny living room. All of them wore tired, melancholy expressions on their faces. It had been a rough night. We exchanged whispered hellos and I set my bag down as my Dad stepped inside and shut the door. I slipped off my shoes and sat down on the ugly, yellow carpet. The memories began to flood back into my mind. Six weeks earlier, while sitting on the same ugly, yellow carpet, I was told my Grandma was going to die. It was a Saturday. I remember because I had gone with my Dad to stay overnight and take care of my Grandma. Upon arriving, my aunt Janet told us my Grandma’s breathing had become uneven the night before. We called a nurse to come and examine my Grandma. The nurse walked into the room where my Grandma had been laying for weeks, made a short examination, then walked back into the living room. All of my Dad’s brothers and sisters had gathered and waited to hear what the nurse had to say. The nurse started off by apologizing for the horrific amount of pain my Grandma was experiencing. Then she dropped the bomb we had all been waiting for. The nurse told us my Grandma’s irregular breathing was

Adaptive Level of Agile Development †Free Samples to Students

Question: Discuss about the Adaptive Level of Agile Development. Answer: Introduction Adaptive methodologies are systematic and structured and systematic project management processes that allow gradual improvement of the practices and decisions that are made during the development of a project, by learning from the outcomes of the decisions that were taken in the previous phases of the project. Project management is a continuous process which is usually divided into phases upon which decisions have to be made on each phase. Adaptive methodologies were introduced to compliment the traditional predictive methodologies which were based on making a project plan which was strictly followed by the development team (Freedman, 2010). Adaptive methodologies were introduced to adapt to the needs of the organization thus leading higher levels of customer satisfaction. Comfort Quits Limited believes that use of an adaptive methodology to develop their information system is the best approach as adaptive methodologies are designed and formulated to adapt to changes while encouragin g continuous learning throughout the process to make sure the needs of the customer are fulfilled. There are many types of adaptive methodologies but this report focuses on The Unified Process (UP) (Mrsic, 2016). The unified process is an adaptive methodology which follows all the basic principles of adaptive methodology as discussed above but has an architecture-centric approach of developing the system in increments. UP is a use-case driven and iterative framework which uses the Unified Modelling language to model the architecture of the proposed system (Alhir, 2001). The Unified process is suitable for large-scale projects and small scale projects like the Comfort Quits Limited Information system. The unified process has the following key features that distinguish it from other adaptive methodologies; Unified process is component based as it at most times used to coordinate projects that are developed using the object oriented approach. The component based approach of developing the system means that some of the components will be reusable with minimal modifications or customizations of the components. The reuse factor of different components gives the development team a chance to focus on the problem and the requirements of the client while spending less time on building of new components It uses the Unified Modelling Language (UML) which is a diagrammatic type of notation of modelling objected oriented designed systems. The process of designing the system is driven and anchored by use of use cases which play a significant role in modelling the expected behaviors of the system and the actors that will be interacting with the system within a certain boundary. For developers, use cases help save time in understanding the requirements of the system as compared to documents like the requirements document which tend to be redundant, ambiguous or redundant at most times. Thus use of use cases help both the development team and the client team to trace the requirements of the system because use cases are easy to analyze after the two teams have agreed on the requirements of the system based on the use case diagrams. For the implementation phase of the project use cases help decompose requirements into smaller requirements which can be allocated to various development team members (Scott, 2001). The unified process is architecture-centric. Architecture can basically be defined as the fundamental organization of the proposed system as a whole. For Comfort Quits Limited, this includes all the sub systems making up the integral system through which different business activities are carried out for example; the stock control subsystem, customer relationship subsystem and the accounting subsystem. The unified process will describe the Comfort Quits Limited information system by describing the static and dynamic elements making up each subsystem, how the two types of elements work together and how the different subsystems are integrated to form one integral information system. The design process in Unified process is incremental and iterative where by the design of the system is done through a sequence of processes. An iteration is a mini project that is released externally for example to Comfort Quits limited or internally to the development team. The end of every iteration results to a new version of the system. The life cycle of the proposed system can be viewed as a series of cycles where by at the end of every cycle a version of the system will be released to Comfort Quits Limited. Each cycle can be divided into four phases where by a phase is the span of time between two major milestones and points at which important decisions affecting the schedule, budget and scope are evaluated and taken. The four phases are; The inception phase is the phase of the cycle where the viability of the Comfort Quits Limited will be evaluated. The evaluation is done by defining the scope of the proposed system, specifying the architecture which is best suited for the system for example it could be N-tier or client-server architecture, identifying all the critical risks that might be incurred and formulating contingency plans and measures to address the risks and finally establishing the direction of the project based on the cost estimates, effort estimates and schedule estimates. The major milestone achieved in the inception phase are referred to as life-cycle objectives. The key indications of the project reaching these milestones include an agreement between Comfort Quits limited and the development team. The main objective of the elaboration phase is to establish the possibility that the proposed Comfort Quits Limited will be built despite of the schedule constraints, financial constraints and other types of constraints that might be faced by the project. The major milestone in elaboration phase is called life-cycle architecture and its achieved if most if not all of the functional requirements are captured within the use case model. The primary objective of the phase is the actual implementation which involves building the system capable of successfully operating in the Comfort Quits Limited. The major milestone of this phase is called initial operational capability and is achieved if the client has an operational version of the system. The primary objective of the transition phase is the deployment of the fully working system to the client. The major objective is called product release. The unified process is the most suitable adaptive methodology for use to develop the Comfort Quits Limited as it will provide a better way of documenting the system thus making it easy to maintain in the future. References Alhir, S.S., 2001. Understanding the Unified Process (UP). Method and Tools. Available at: https://www.methodsandtools.com/archive/archive.php?id=32 [Accessed October 19, 2017]. Freedman, R., 2010. Adaptive Project Framework: A new level of agile development. Tech Republic. Available at: https://www.techrepublic.com/blog/tech-decision-maker/adaptive-project-framework-a-new-level-of-agile-development/ [Accessed October 19, 2017]. Mrsic, M., 2016. Adaptive Project Management. Active Collab LLC. Available at: https://activecollab.com/blog/project-management/adaptive-project-management [Accessed October 19, 2017]. Scott, K., 2001. Overview of the Unified Process. Inform IT. Available at: https://www.informit.com/articles/article.aspx?p=24671seqNum=10 [Accessed October 19, 2017].

Strategic Comparison of Companies

Question: Discuss about theStrategic Comparison of Companies. Answer: Introduction Business management can be understood as the process of developing plans, procedures, strategies and policies that guides a company on both day-to-day and extended term basis. It encompasses financial, human along with the material resources to attain company objectives (Barnett, Darnall and Husted 2015). The objective of the paper is to compare and contrast the strategic position of two companies namely, Blackmore and Brambles. Such comparison is conducted based on the vision and mission statement, values, corporate social responsibility along with SMART analysis of the companies. Moreover, the history of the companies also with the achievement of them in certain areas will also be evaluated in this paper. Comparison and Contrast of Blackmore and Brambles Vision and Mission Statement Blackmore Company Vision Statement- The Company intends to achieve its business objectives through translating their unrivalled heritage and knowledge into quality branded healthcare and innovative solutions that is effective (Beringer, Jonas and Kock 2013). Mission Statement- The mission of the company is to enhance lives of people through delivering the worlds best solutions on natural health that turns out to be first choice of consumers in healthcare. Brambles Company Vision Statement- Brambles intends to improve performance of the consumers through helping them in transporting goods by means of their supply chain. Mission Statement- The mission statement of Brambles considers developing sustainability framework in order to position itself as the world-leading provider of the logistics solutions. Organizational Values Organizational Values of Blackmore Company Passion for Natural Health- The Company has increased enthusiasm and belief in a natural approach to healthcare motivates the company in maintaining expense in all its operations (Blackmores.com.au., 2016). Integrity- The Company is honest and committed to highest standards of personal and business behavior. Leadership- The Company works as a team and as individuals, the company employs wisdom and knowledge for influencing employees at their best. Organizational Values of Brambles Company Shared values of Brambles Company are mentioned in the code of conduct of the company and serves as a core aspect of the companys culture. The shared values of the company consider that the operations within the company begin with the consumers, the company has passion for success, and it is committed to diversity, safety and teamwork (Brambles Corporate Site., 2016). Moreover, the values of the company believes in the culture of innovation and makes sure that the company acts with integrity and respect for the communities within which the company operates. Corporate Social Responsibility/Sustainability Blackmore Corporate Social Responsibility The social responsibility actions of the company demonstrate the companys care, respect compassion for all its employees, the wider community and the environment. The company is committed to promote its social responsibility values. Blackmore encourages its staff to get involved in social responsibility guidelines, in all its business conducts and employing social responsibility strategies in their everyday life (Della Rocca 2015). Brambles Corporate Social Responsibility The social responsibility of Brambles is developed on the principles those are greatly sustainable. The company offers safe, effective and sustainable solutions within the supply chains of its consumers. The company contributes to the circular economy by means of their CSR strategies of reuse, recover, reduce and recycle (Elms and Low 2013). Stakeholders Management Blackmore Company attempts to manage its capital in order to make sure that the entities of the group might be capable to continue as an increasing concern at the time of maximizing the stakeholders returns by means of optimizing equity and debt balance. Brambles Company has developed strategies such as zero harm that ensures that the company has the right to be safe at work and get back to their home healthy. Zero harm strategy makes sure that it provides increased priority to its stakeholder groups (Guarino, Reckase and Wooldridge 2014). SMART Analysis of the Companies SMART Analysis of Blackmore Company Specific- Blackmore has a specific goal of defining a new market where the company has taken time for innovating in a particular way. Measurable- Blackmore intends to set standard and this serves as a measurable goal for the reason that sales figures are needed to be reported. The company is implemented sales metrics analytics system properly to report to all its stakeholders. Achievable- Being the worlds most popular companies, the results of the companys efforts is closely recognized by the world. Relevant- In the recent years, the company is making great attempts to access the new healthcare facilities in the huge following; it can expand its product line in a manner that makes its medical facilities more convenient. Time-Oriented- The company sets superior standards for growth in a region where the firm has currently invested in huge quantity of its resources. Such objective is time-bound, as they have limited time to attain market share at the end of the year. SMART Analysis of Brambles Company Specific- Brambles Company intends took increase yearly sales of its specialized products at the end of the end of the year. This serves as a specific goal as it considers an area where the company has just developed a product line and attains a particular figure to attain its growth objective. Measurable- The above objective of the company serves as measurable goal as Brambles Company maintains track of its yearly sales reports. Achievable- The goal and distinct services of attaining specific sales figure is attainable, as the available of all the product lines will offer tough competition to its competitors. Relevant- The specific goal of the company is considered relevant as the company continues to deal with large competition. Time-Oriented- The goal of increasing annual sales of the company is deemed to be time-bound as it determines the deadline for the measurement of growth after implementation of specific sales growth strategies. Believable and Added Value Analysis Blackmore Companys Achievements With great contribution to attain business objectives, the company has a significant milestone and has an attained as new era of achievements in collaboration, learning and discovery. The company has offered a number of new products every year with more than 80 fresh products, new pack sizes and enhanced product development resulting in growth of the company. Blackmore has launched an award-winning website that was re-launched in order to gain increased consumer attention in the social media. The new site was highly interactive and has turned out to be among the renowned online health communities in Australia. The production line of the company has increased its capability by 20%, along with enhanced product flows from from its new layout and focus on the improvements, and attained a daily production record of 82,000 units packed in a single day (Koo 2016). Brambles Companys Achievements The financial performance of Brambles Company is observed to be significant. The performance of the company improved with years that further triggered the companys performance. Because of the companys superior performance it attained long-term incentive awards and share based incentive plans. The sales revenue increased over the year that is designed to drive profitable business growth and continuous sales increase over the three years period is observed to help the company in attaining performance achievement The Company manages its capital and the profitable growth based several cash awards for the company (Lorange 2013). All the operating segments of the company attained considerable improvements and developed efficient technology to facilitate flexibility in its business operations. Moreover, the company continued to ensue better reporting that helped the company in identifying and addressing the higher risk potentials. Moreover, the company has attained great growth through bein g highly committed to sustainable use of products and services by means of its supply chain. Recommendations Based on the strategic comparison of both the companies, Blackmore Company is recommended to invest new growth opportunities to increase returns and generate value for the sustainability of its stakeholders in the long term. The companys sustainability strategy should focus on the employees so that learning and the development opportunities are easily available to them. Moreover, the Brambles Company is recommended to invest more in the growth program (Seuring and Gold 2013). This strengthens its existing business in consideration to the actions to offer operational efficiencies that can intend to sustain the competitive advantages. Moreover, to gain strategic advantages, the company must consider reconstructing its pricing strategy and encourage the pricing team for implementing automated online pricing tool in order to develop simplified pricing structure. Brambles must make huge attempts to search for opportunities for addressing the challenges to the supply of pallet-grade chain in some developing geographic regions. Conclusion The objective of the paper was to compare and contrast the strategic position of two companies namely, Blackmore and Brambles. Such comparison was conducted based on the vision and mission statement, values, corporate social responsibility along with SMART analysis of the companies. It was gathered from the paper that the Blackmore Company has increased enthusiasm and belief in a natural approach to healthcare motivates the company in maintaining expense in all its operations. The shared values of the company consider that the operations within the company begin with the consumers, the company has passion for success, and it is committed to diversity, safety and teamwork. Blackmore has a specific goal of defining a new market where the company has taken time for innovating in a particular way. Blackmore intends to set standard and this serves as a measurable goal for the reason that sales figures are needed to be reported. The company is implemented sales metrics analytics system properly to report to all its stakeholders. Based on the strategic comparison of both the companies, Blackmore Company is recommended to invest new growth opportunities to increase returns and generate value for the sustainability of its stakeholders in the long term. Moreover, the Brambles Company is recommended to invest more in the growth program that strengthens its existing business in consideration to the actions to offer operational efficiencies that can intend to sustain the competitive advantages. Reference List Barnett, M.L., Darnall, N. and Husted, B.W., 2015. Sustainability strategy in constrained economic times.Long Range Planning,48(2), pp.63-68. Beringer, C., Jonas, D. and Kock, A., 2013. Behavior of internal stakeholders in project portfolio management and its impact on success.International Journal of Project Management,31(6), pp.830-846. Blackmores.com.au., 2016.Annual half-year reports. [online] Available at: https://www.blackmores.com.au/about-us/investor-centre/annual-and-half-year-reports [Accessed 8 Dec. 2016]. Brambles Corporate Site., 2016.Annual Reports. [online] Available at: https://www.brambles.com/annual-reports [Accessed 8 Dec. 2016]. Della Rocca, G., 2015. The definition and implentation of CSR strategy in multinational companies: cross industry analysis on the impact of CSR on global supply chain management. Elms, D.K. and Low, P. eds., 2013.Global value chains in a changing world. Geneva: World Trade Organization. Guarino, C.M., Reckase, M.D. and Wooldridge, J.M., 2014. Can value-added measures of teacher performance be trusted?.Education Finance and Policy. Koo, B.K., 2016. The Smart Strategy for Side Branch Intervention: Still the Less, the Better?.JACC: Cardiovascular Interventions,9(6), pp.527-529. Lorange, P., 2013. Co-operative strategies: planning and control considerations.Strategies in global competition, pp.370-389. Seuring, S. and Gold, S., 2013. Sustainability management beyond corporate boundaries: from stakeholders to performance.Journal of Cleaner Production,56, pp.1-6. Song, Y.B., Park, T.K., Hahn, J.Y., Yang, J.H., Choi, J.H., Choi, S.H., Lee, S.H. and Gwon, H.C., 2016. Optimal strategy for provisional side branch intervention in coronary bifurcation lesions: 3-year outcomes of the SMART-STRATEGY randomized trial.JACC: Cardiovascular Interventions,9(6), pp.517-526. Wang, S. and Xiao, X., 2016, July. CSR, strategy and financial performance. InIndustrial Economics System and Industrial Security Engineering (IEIS), 2016 International Conference on(pp. 1-6). IEEE.

Women in Military Essay Example For Students

Women in Military Essay Throughout the history of the United States of America, Civil Rights have expanded to include everyone. Many activists have fought for rights, setting precedents to be followed. In 1920, the 19th Amendment granted suffrage to women. Since then, women have been gradually stepping up on the ladder of success. Everyday more and more opportunities are opening themselves up for women. Because of these changes, we have had to add unheard of words such as congresswoman, policewoman, etc. to the dictionary to keep up with their advancement. The United States military is even inviting women into their ranks. Military Women rising up in status and prestige is a great thing, but there are some things which they cannot do. Women should never be allowed in combat during a war. We will write a custom essay on Women in Military specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now Women, physically, are not as capable as men to handle the duties of combat. To enter the United States Military, women are required to do physically less than men. As a man is required 20 pull-ups, a woman is demanded 5 for this very reason. Carrying gear upwards of 100 pounds, soldiers must hike for miles, sometimes at grueling speeds. Most women would be exhausted from this, but the more muscular bodies of men are more resilient and can put up with this treatment. On a hike or in other situations, bathroom breaks are needed. Most men need much less time than women to use the washroom, which could save them the crucial moments they need to avoid an ambush. In combat, hand-to-hand fighting is almost inevitable. Women in a fistfight have the major disadvantages of more frigid bones, less muscle mass, and weaker joints. Emotionally and mentally, women are less fit for combat. Women share their feelings more than men, and are effected by many different things. Seeing a friend shot and killed would devastate both a man and a woman, but a man is more likely to stay with his platoon and get the job done. Women, for the most part, are more independent thinkers when it comes to military; men are better at taking orders. What would seem like a suicide mission could be the turning point in a battle. Men would most likely follow the orders, while the women would think about it and be hesitant. Men also take more risks than women, this is proved by car insurance rates. A man is much better mentally and emotionally fit for combat Women should never be let into the military because America is not ready to see their mothers and daughters go to war. During wartime, when the men get drafted to go to war, the women are the backbone of the economy and the major suppliers of the labor in factories. Young children, wi th their mothers and fathers drafted, would have no place to go. A husband whos wife gets drafted would eagerly take her place. Sixty year old fathers would also do the same for their daughters. Women nurture our society and do a great job at it. Half of the motivation of the soldiers on the front lines is the women that they left behind. Women should never be allowed to fight in combat during wartime. Although they are capable of exceeding men in some situations, military battles are a mans job. The fight for equal rights is a fight that must be fought, but there are obvious differences between the two sexes, which need to be taken into account. Men might have their niche in the combat of a war, but women have proved to be the dominant successors of the planning part. Since both sexes have qualities that make them more successful at different things, and many things they are both capable of performing, it is safe to say that men and women are both equal and different.

Personal Reflection Report Essay Example

Personal Reflection Report Essay Example Personal Reflection Report Essay Personal Reflection Report Essay It had been a privilege for me to take part in this assignment. It was a great chance to put myself in the shoe of the marketers to carry out a Marketing Plan. Well, frankly speaking, it was never easy to design a good marketing plan. Before I got everything started, it was time-consuming for me to figure out and choose a company which authentically suited the product that I was going to introduce. After making up my mind to select Southern Lion as my company, I wade through all sort of information related with that company that I could obtain from the internet. I learnt the history of that company, the growing sales of the company and the concept or ideology that the company had followed all these while to be a distinguished one in the rat-race society. While designing my marketing plan, I was given the opportunity to apply those theories that I had been learned from MKT 203. I was required to carry out a situational analysis at the beginning stage of the assignments. Through this analysis, I did realize the importance of so-called PEST and SWOT to a company. It allowed people to learn the situation of the company internally and externally. Effective program and action can only take place if and only if we clearly discovered and understood the overall situation. Both of them had always been the critical issues that companies should pay attention to them. Neglecting any of these issues may lead to failure in conducting business. When came to figure out my marketing objectives, it was advisable to create them in a SMART way. SMART stood for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time. If we dont make our objective SMART, it will be too vague and will not be realized. Remember that the rest of the plan hinges on the objective. If it is not correct, our marketing plan may fail.  It was of the utmost importance to detect our target market well. Generally, target market consisted of a set of buyers who shared common needs that my company decided to serve. Countless surveys had been carried out to detect the existence of our target market. Being understood with our target market, we are able to implement effective activities to appeal our new product to them. This stage did carry a heavy weight as determining the correct target market may stimulate our sales and in the long run gain profits to the company. When we talk about marketing, there is always a connection with the 4P. Basically, 4P is made up of Product, Price, Place and Promotion. According to the principle of marketing, they are defined as the basic marketing mixes. In this context, when we talk about product, we are actually looking into the quality, the brand, the packaging and the labelling of the product. Consumer will try to look into these aspects whenever they wish to make a purchase of a product. Being inundated with all kind of information from different sources nowadays, consumers tend to be very sensitive with the price of the product. They love to make comparison for prices of different products. Therefore, we have to be alert when we set our price before entering the market. Besides, choosing a right place to distribute our products is crucial as well. We have to discover the background of our distributors before allowing them to sell our product in the market. They have to be reliable as they are the one who will directly influence the image and reputation of our product. Promotion should be a word that most of us familiar with in our daily lifestyle. However, it is never simple to carry out promotion. Before you try to organise it, you have to come out with budgets. Do you have sufficient manpower? Are your people well-trained so that they are able to convince consumer to result in a purchase of our product? How about the objective of the promotion? These are the factors that we should take into account before we launch a promotion. Always remember that the main purpose that we hold promotion is to introduce our product to the public. Make our product appealing enough that it will become well-known among the consumers. Promotion has always been a great avenue for us to build up the image of our new product. Through this assignment, I also appreciate the chance given for me to briefly know about the implementation and control of a marketing plan. After the marketing plan was designed, we have to select those competent people to carry out the activities as planned. Its a matter of human resource. In this context, communication between colleagues does carry weight to ensure a successful teamwork. Besides, we have to make sure our target achieved on time.

Capital structure and payout policy Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Capital structure and payout policy - Term Paper Example Introduction Background Starbucks Corporation is an international company that deals with coffee products, with its headquarters based in Seattle Washington, America. During its commencement in 1971, the company was a retailer and a local coffee roaster; but it has since stretched out swiftly. It has Italian-style coffeehouse chain and it is the world’s largest coffeehouse company, with presence in more than 60 countries and more than 20,000 stores (Starbucks Corporation 2011 3). It deals with coffee beans, salads, hot and cold drinks, hot and cold sandwiches, snacks, mugs and tumblers, and sweet pastries. In addition, Starbucks distributes some of its brand through grocery stores, including coffee and ice cream. Its other products include markets films, music, and books through the Hear Music and the Starbucks Entertainment division. Scores of the company’s products are either location specific or seasonal. Starbuck’s most remarkable expansion, when it used to o pen new stores days on end, was in the 1990s till 2000s. The company started establishing oversees stores in 1990s; and currently, roughly third of its stores are oversees (Starbucks 2). Identification of problem Starbucks mainly obtain its capital from equity and debt sources. However, the company must struggle to strike a good balance between equity and debt; because, if it uses too much debt, then it may be obligated to pay too much interest and subject it to the risk of bankruptcy. Furthermore, such a scenario could limit its payout capability, hence keeping away investors, which again limits its shareholding capability. Therefore, it is important to analyze the company’s capital structure, as it plays a crucial role in regards to its dividend payout, risk of bankruptcy among other issues. Analysis of issues Capital structure means the manner in which a particular company combines its sources of capital, which are used to finance its long-term assets, including debt and e quity. Gearing or leverages is used to measure the proportion of the company’s debt capital. However, the company’s capital structure is affected by a number of factors, and the optimal financing mix should be its target. Difficulty, however, arises, in trying to establish the exact optimal capital structure, since this process is not a science. In order for Starbuck to establish its optimal capital structure, it has to give consideration to all the factors that are believed to play some crucial role in establishing an optimal mix. In addition, it is important to consider the fact that a trade-off between return and risk has a strong impact on the capital structure. In other words, this means that excessive debt will increase the company’s earnings risk, though this will lead to higher potential returns. Furthermore, if the company maintains high debt capital, the stock price will decline due to the higher risk related to high level of debts. On the other hand, the stock becomes more attractive to the investors, if it has a high potential of returns, which will again send the stock’s prices upwards. As such, the optimal capital structure for Starbuck is the one that establishes a balance between return and risk, hence helping attain its overall goal of maximizing the prices of its stock. It is, therefore, very crucial for the management of Starbuck to ensure it maintains the lowest cost of capital and at the same time maximizes the shareholder’s wealth. Capital structure i