| Name of course | Offered by | Location | the period | Overview Course |
| 1- Six Segma | (International Center for Strategic Management &
Organizational Development) &University of California Irvine Extension | Irvine, CA | 30 March to 7 April 2013 | One successful business management strategy used by business enterprises is called six sigma. This strategy was developed and used originally by Motorola in the year 1986. Motorola is a renowned multinational telecommunications company. By the year 2010, this strategy was being used by many industry sectors. It is a high-performance approach that is data-driven. In this article, various Six Sigma goals are discussed.
The Six Sigma strategy uses a number of quality management methods. Such methods include specific training used to create special infrastructures of certified individuals in the organization who are experts in these methods. These individuals are referred to as ‘belts’; yellow, green, black, or master black depending on their expertise. Such experts focus their attention on projects. This helps in getting things done in an organized, teamwork-based fashion and assures quality end products or services.
One of the major goals of this strategy is quality control. The enterprise reviews quality of all factors involved in production. It places emphasis on elements like job management, controls, performance and integrity criteria. It also puts into place well managed and defined processes, as well as identification records. The Six Sigma Process also places a large emphasis competence, skills, knowledge, qualifications and experience of personnel.
The aim is to identify, analyze and remove causes of errors and defects in the organization. By so doing, 6 Sigma delivers real improvements in terms of quality and revenue. As a result, the bottom line of the enterprise is affected positively.
Another goal of this strategy is total quality management. This management philosophy aims at improving quality of processes and products continuously. It assumes that the quality of processes and products is the responsibility of any and every person involved in the consumption and creation of the service or products offered by an enterprise. It capitalizes on the involvement of customers, suppliers, workforce and management in order to exceed or meet the expectations of customers.
The ultimate goal of Six Sigma lies in zero defects within the products or services offered by an organization. A sigma rating can be used to describe the maturity of manufacturing processes. This rating indicates the yield or percentage of products the particular process creates that are defect-free. Over 99.99 percent of the outputs are expected to be defect-free statistically when it comes to 6 Sigma, or more specifically, less than 3.4 defects per million opportunities. Defects are defined as any output that does not meet the specifications of customers. By having such high quality output, a process, and therefore, a company, can meet or exceed the requirements or specifications of its customers.
Another Six Sigma Goal includes reducing variability in business and manufacturing processes. This is done by ensuring that each project carried out by the organization follows defined steps in a sequence. This shrinks the process variations dramatically. It also sets financial targets that are quantified such as profit increase or cost reduction.
There are many other Six Sigma goals. The overall objective of this strategy is to expand a company's top line performance. This enables that company to drive the growth of its bottom line. The data-driven approach of analyzing the root causes of defects helps to deliver real improvements to the bottom line of the enterprise. Evidenced by the success attributed to those enterprises that have used it, it is clear that the techniques and tools the Six Sigma system provides are effective.
|
| 2- Financial Management | Chicago Analytics& Regent
Park Institute Excellence in
Education | Irvine, CA | 1 day course ( 8th of July 2012) | What are the goals of Financial Management?
The financial management has to take three important decision viz. (i) Investment decision i.e., where to invest fund and in what amount, (ii) Financing decision i.e., from where to raise funds and in what amount, and (iii) Dividend i.e., how much to pay dividend and how much to retain for future expansion. In order to make these decisions the management must have a clear understanding of the objective sought to be achieved. It is generally agreed that the financial objective of the firm should be maximization of owner's economic welfare. There are two widely discussed approaches or criterion of maximizing owners' welfare -(i) Profit maximization, and (ii) Wealth maximization. It should be noted here that objective is used in the sense of goal or goals or decision criterion for the three decisions involved.
Profit Maximization: Maximization of profits is very often considered as the mainobjective of a business enterprise. The shareholders, the owners of the business, invest their funds in the business with the hope of getting higher dividend on their investment. Moreover, the profitability of the business is an indicator of the sound health of the organisation, because, it safeguards the economic interests of various social groups which are directly or indirectly connected with the company e.g. shareholders, creditors and employees. All these parties must get reasonable return for their contributions and it is possible only when company earns higher profits or sufficient profits to discharge the obligations to them.
Wealth Maximization: The wealth maximization (also known as value maximization or Net Present Worth Maximization) is also universally accepted criterion for financial decision making. The value of an asset should be viewed in terms of benefits it can produce over the cost of capital investment.
Prof. Era Solomon has defined the concept of wealth maximization as follows- "The gross present worth of a course of action is equal to the capitalized value of the flow of future expected benefits, discounted (or as capitalized) at a rate which reflects their certainty or uncertainty. Wealth or net amount of capital investment required to achieve the benefits being discussed. Any financial action which creates wealth or which has a net present worth above zero is a desirable one and should be undertaken. Any financial action which does not meet this test should be rejected. If two or more desirable courses of action are mutually exclusive (i.e., if only one can be undertaken) then the decision should be to do that which creates most wealth or shows the greatest amount of net present worth. In short, the operating objective for financial management is to maximize wealth or net present worth. Thus, the concept of wealth maximization is based on cash flows (inflows and outflows) generated by the decision. If inflows are greater than outflows, the decision is good because it maximizes the wealth of the owners.
|
| 3-Project Mahagment Mastery | uland stanford junior university | Irvine, CA | 28th and 29th of April 2012 | Project Management and Goal Setting
Identifying actionable goals can be difficult if you don’t know what you want to achieve and if you don’t have a process in place. As engineers, we know that every successful project has a clearly defined project statement, scope, and process to deliver the intended results. The skills of project management, which we’ve developed delivering projects, can also be applied to defining and delivering our most important goals.
Project management uses an easy five-step process to guide projects from concept through final delivery. This process is successful in delivering projects in the work place and you canuse it in delivering your projects as well. Applying the principals of project management, you can define and deliver your most important goals. The process includes these steps:
Initiating. You initiate by defining your goal statement. Your goal statement includes all major deliverables, assumptions, objectives, constraints, stakeholders, and end date. Just like projects, the goal you’re aiming at may have more than one phase, so identify these and any major milestones as well.
Planning. With the goal statement in mind, turn to planning the resources, the duration, how to overcome constraints, who you’ll need to work with, what alternatives do you need to consider and plan for, what risks are involved, and how each deliverable will be created. The planning may be specific if you know all of the possible parameters involved, or can be elaborated as more information becomes available.
Executing. This step is simple: take action. Begin immediately executing your plan.
Monitoring & Controlling. In projects we use quality control and assurance to ensure the project work is proceeding as planned. Measures of time, cost, and scope are typically used to identify if a project is on plan or not. Depending on the complexity or your goals, you may be concerned about these same quantitative parameters. Or you may be more interested in the qualitative factors associated with achieving your goals, such as the satisfaction that comes from working towards achieving what’s most important to you.
Closing. Success isn’t achieved until the project is complete, whether in the work place or in our own lives. Your goal statement included deliverables, objectives and an end date. Closing out your goal requires that you meet these three elements.
Project Management and Goal Setting
Identifying actionable goals can be difficult if you don’t know what you want to achieve and if you don’t have a process in place. As engineers, we know that every successful project has a clearly defined project statement, scope, and process to deliver the intended results. The skills of project management, which we’ve developed delivering projects, can also be applied to defining and delivering our most important goals.
Project management uses an easy five-step process to guide projects from concept through final delivery. This process is successful in delivering projects in the work place and you canuse it in delivering your projects as well. Applying the principals of project management, you can define and deliver your most important goals. The process includes these steps:
Initiating. You initiate by defining your goal statement. Your goal statement includes all major deliverables, assumptions, objectives, constraints, stakeholders, and end date. Just like projects, the goal you’re aiming at may have more than one phase, so identify these and any major milestones as well.
Planning. With the goal statement in mind, turn to planning the resources, the duration, how to overcome constraints, who you’ll need to work with, what alternatives do you need to consider and plan for, what risks are involved, and how each deliverable will be created. The planning may be specific if you know all of the possible parameters involved, or can be elaborated as more information becomes available.
Executing. This step is simple: take action. Begin immediately executing your plan.
Monitoring & Controlling. In projects we use quality control and assurance to ensure the project work is proceeding as planned. Measures of time, cost, and scope are typically used to identify if a project is on plan or not. Depending on the complexity or your goals, you may be concerned about these same quantitative parameters. Or you may be more interested in the qualitative factors associated with achieving your goals, such as the satisfaction that comes from working towards achieving what’s most important to you.
Closing. Success isn’t achieved until the project is complete, whether in the work place or in our own lives. Your goal statement included deliverables, objectives and an end date. Closing out your goal requires that you meet these three elements.
|
| 4- Why Housing
Development Cost
So Much? | Housing Opportunities Made
Easier & Housing Issues
Forum | Camarillo, CA | 15-Oct-13 | Last year the federal government doled out nearly $2 billion in |
| | | | | funding to public agencies across the country for the creation of |
| | | | | affordable housing. |
| | | | | That doesn’t include the millions of additional dollars that the |
| | | | | states allocate to the projects in the form of set-aside property |
| | | | | tax revenues and federal and state tax credits to firms that |
| | | | | invest in the housing projects. |
| | | | | place to live at a subsidized cost, the underlying goal behind all |
| | | | | this funding is clearly well intentioned. |
| | | | | But when it comes to how public agencies spend all that cash, it |
| | | | | can leave a lot to be desired. |
| | | | | A closer look at the affordable housing industry nationwide |
| | | | | reveals a tangled web of rapidly rising construction costs, |
| | | | | misspent funds, and in some cases, major fraud allegations |
| | | | | against public officials and housing developers. And all that that |
| | | | | ultimately means fewer housing units are being built to help |
| | | | | house the nation’s poorest residents. |
| | | | | So where are public officials going wrong? |
| | | | | Here’s a rundown of the factors fueling the massive cost of |
| | | | | creating affordable housing and what some agencies are doing |
| | | | | to try to combat it. |
| | | | | A new affordable housing philosophy |
| | | | | In many cases these new developments are nothing like what |
| | | | | many people think of when they think of public |
| | | | | housing “projects.” |
| | | | | Facing increasing city and state regulations and the hurdle of |
| | | | | convincing often-less-than-welcoming residents, many public |
| | | | | housing developers have added a host of sustainable building |
| | | | | and design features to their housing projects — ranging from |
| | | | | solar panels and expansive fitness centers to parks and |
| | | | | amphitheaters. |
| | | | | Nonprofit news site Voice of San Diego reported on the massive |
| | | | | cost of affordable housing construction in a July special report |
| | | | | titled “The Game: Building ‘Taj Mahals with Taxpayer Money.” |
| | | | | “Far from the ugly concrete towers of the past, today’s |
| | | | | affordable housing projects are often the best-designed, most |
| | | | | beautiful buildings in their neighborhoods.” |
| | | | | And this philosophy can be seen in other cities across the |
| | | | | country, such as in New York City where a recent NY Times |
| | | | | architecture review hailed the new Via Verde development as an |
| | | | | architectural gem. |
| | | | | “Unlike so many public-housing projects, Via Verde rethinks the |
| | | | | mix of private and public spaces to encourage residents to |
| | | | | spend time outside, in the fresh air. It breaks the mold of |
| | | | | subsidized housing whereby clinics, low-income rentals and |
| | | | | home ownership are all conceived, financed and regulated |
| | | | | separately. Piecing them together, it takes the healthier, holistic |
| | | | | tack. Healthy design comes down to fundamentals in this case: |
| | | | | air, light, places to stroll, things to look at. |
| | | | | Which is Via Verde’s other distinction: its premium on looks.” |
| | | | | Supporters hail the changes as a massive improvement over the |
| | | | | often poorly designed public housing projects of decades past. |
| | | | | They point out that in many ways these buildings serve a variety |
| | | | | of purposes beyond providing affordable housing, such as |
| | | | | removing blight or adding important green space to dense |
| | | | | urban areas |
| | | | | But it comes at a cost. |
| | | | | Many of these projects have hefty price tags, reaching into the |
| | | | | tens of millions, to house only a few hundred families, if that. |
| | | | | In San Diego, for example, construction costs have reached as |
| | | | | $477,000 per unit, double what private developers spend to |
| | | | | develop high-end apartments, according to the Voice of San |
| | | | | Diego investigation. |
| | | | | Some public officials argue that spending so much on single |
| | | | | units misses the point of providing as much affordable housing |
| | | | | as possible. |
| | | | | In Glendale, Calif. where I used to work as a City Hall beat |
| | | | | reporter, Mayor Ara Najarian often questioned the city’s policy |
| | | | | of purchasing land to build pricey new housing, developments |
| | | | | when he said the same ends could be met by rehabilitating |
| | | | | existing apartment or condo units for low-income renters or |
| | | | | buyers at a lower cost. |
| | | | | “I think our obligation as a Housing Authority is to provide as |
| | | | | much clean and safe housing to the public as possible. That |
| | | | | doesn’t mean brand spanking new,” he said. “I think we are on |
| | | | | the wrong track.” |
| | | | | Because, Najarian and other critics say, at the end of the day, |
| | | | | when projects costs are high, fewer units are built, and more |
| | | | | people are left on mile-long waiting lists. |
| | | | | Take the Via Verde development, as written about in the NY |
| | | | | Times architecture review. |
| | | | | “The complex, with 71 co-ops and 151 rental apartments, is |
| | | | | harder to get into than some of the toughest colleges. Some 800 |
| | | | | families have applied for the co-ops alone.” |
| | | | | Rising construction costs |
| | | | | Expensive design plans, though, are only one of the factors |
| | | | | fueling the major price tags to build these projects. |
| | | | | In California, many in the public housing industry point to the |
| | | | | state committee that hands out the tax credits that in most |
| | | | | cases are needed to make the developments a reality. |
| | | | | Voice of San Diego reported that many insiders have dubbed |
| | | | | the business “The Game,” where the projects with the highest |
| | | | | costs are often rewarded with the tax credits. |
| | | | | “Developers spend months putting together applications that are |
| | | | | often inches thick and that break down their projects to the |
| | | | | finest detail. The trick is to score as high as possible on the |
| | | | | committee’s points system, a process that during the last |
| | | | | decade has become increasingly daunting and has resulted in |
| | | | | escalating bills for taxpayers, who eventually foot the cost.” |
| | | | | Housing officials themselves acknowledge that the process is |
| | | | | growing out of control. |
| | | | | Joel John Roberts, chief executive officer of Los Angeles |
| | | | | nonprofit housing People Assisting the Homeless, took on the |
| | | | | issue in a January 2011 blog post. |
| | | | | He attributed the high costs to four main factors: |
| | | | | 1. Cost of land. You can’t simply strong-arm a land owner to |
| | | | | lower their price despite the difficulty in selling in this economy. |
| | | | | If public funding is used to build housing, the land has to be |
| | | | | purchased at the going market rate. |
| | | | | 2. Cost of accessing public funding. No housing can be built and |
| | | | | offered at affordable rent rates without public funding, from local, |
| | | | | state, or federal funding sources. The application process is |
| | | | | arduous, time-consuming, and political. The cost to put together |
| | | | | a complicated housing development can be expensive. You |
| | | | | almost need a PhD in finance, politics, and housing to be |
| | | | | successful in public funding. |
| | | | | 3. Building and planning codes do not cater to affordable |
| | | | | housing. A city in the Los Angeles region mandated that we |
| | | | | provide two parking spaces per unit, even though we all knew |
| | | | | that the building was designed for formerly homeless persons |
| | | | | who would be lucky to have one car. That one requirement cost |
| | | | | us more than a million dollars in building a garage larger than |
| | | | | what was needed. Other codes mandate unit sizes that are |
| | | | | larger than what could be used in affordable housing. |
| | | | | 4. Prevailing wage ordinance requirements. Most states |
| | | | | mandate that if a development receives public funding, the |
| | | | | developer must pay their construction workers prevailing |
| | | | | wages. These wages are higher than minimum wage, and are |
| | | | | geared toward insuring that low-income workers are paid high |
| | | | | enough wages to prevent poverty. Builders believe this |
| | | | | requirement increases construction costs by 10% to 50%. |
| | | | | In turn, Roberts says that policy change is needed to ensure all |
| | | | | housing dollars are spent effectively. |
| 5- Young Professionals
Leadership Summit | International Student
Services Concordia
University Irvine | Irvine, CA | Sep 25 To Oct 4 , 2013 | I help a lot of leaders create individual development plans using some variation of this process. This time of year (January) is always especially busy. |
| | | | | Although every leader I work with is unique, it seems like the development goals end up being somewhat common from year to year. |
| | | | | To help you get a head start on your 2010 leadership development plan, here’s a list of development goals that may apply to you too. I’d recommend picking no more than one and really working at it for at least 6 months. Do not attempt to work on all 12, just because there are 12 months in a year. (-: |
| | | | | For 2010, I’d like to improve my: |
| | | | | 1. Strategic thinking. |
| | | | | Improve my ability to see the big picture and take a longer range, broader business perspective. Learn to step back from the day-to-day tactical details of my business and focus on the “why”, not just the “what” and “how”. |
| | | | | 2. Listening. |
| | | | | Learn to pay attention and demonstrate to others that that I value what they have to say. Use active listening, open-ended questions, body language, and eliminate distractions that get in the way of my ability to listen. |
| | | | | 3. Coaching. |
| | | | | Shift my leadership style away from always directing and telling and learn to guide and develop my direct reports. Work with each of my direct reports to create their own individual development plans. |
| | | | | 4. Financial acumen. |
| | | | | Learn how to understand, interpret, and use “the numbers” to improve my business. |
| | | | | 5. Cross-functional knowledge and perspective. |
| | | | | Learn about other aspects of the business other than my own functional silo. |
| | | | | 6. Industry, competitive, and customer knowledge. |
| | | | | Improve my understanding of our industry and our competitors. Get closer to our customers and find out what they need and value. |
| | | | | 7. Leadership presence. |
| | | | | Improve my ability to “command a room” and communicate in an authentic way that inspires others. |
| | | | | 8. Change leadership |
| | | | | . |
| | | | | Be more of a change catalyst, a champion of change. Learn to implement and sustain change in my organization. |
| | | | | 9. Remote management |
| | | | | . |
| | | | | Improve my ability to manage my remote direct reports and organization. Make better use of technology to plan, communicate, and collaborate virtually. |
| | | | | 10. Collaboration. |
| | | | | Improve relationships with my peers. Be a better partner, understand their goals and needs, and learn to work together to help achieve each others goals. |
| | | | | 11. Talent management. |
| | | | | Improve my ability to assess, hire, promote, and develop. Fill all open positions with nothing but “A” players and replace chronic underperformers. Develop a “virtual bench” for all key positions and a succession plan for my own position. |
| | | | | 12. Time management. |
| | | | | Get a handle on where I’m wasting time and shift my focus to more value-added activities. Learn ways to work more efficiently and prioritize. |
| 6- Finance | Chapman University | Orange, CA | 26-Oct-13 | What are your top three financial objectives? |
| | | | | Most people, when asked that question, answer with general goals, such as achieving financial security. |
| | | | | The fact is, many of us haven't thought much about which financial objectives really matter most. Instead, we muddle through our financial lives, spending to meet the day-to-day expenses that dominate our attention. |
| | | | | That approach risks leaving your most important objectives unfulfilled. |
| | | | | That's what this lesson is all about: helping you identify the financial goals that matter most to you and making sure they happen. |
| | | | | That's not as easy as it sounds, since financial goals continually collide with one another. Paying for a child's braces may rob money that would otherwise go into his college fund, for example. And saving effectively for your kids' college can wipe out any hope of putting aside adequate money for your own retirement. |
| | | | | That's why to get what you want most you must 1) decide which goals will take priority and 2) work toward the lesser goals only after the really important ones are well provided for. |
| | | | | Fortunately, you have at least one ally in meeting your long-range goals: time. That's an advantage because of the power of compounding - the fact that even a small amount of money can earn interest, and that each year that interest gets applied to a growing sum of money. |
| | | | | Suppose, for example, you put aside only the cost of a single candy bar - about 65 cents - each day. Invested in a tax-deferred account paying 5% a year compounded monthly, that string of savings would grow to $3,073 in just 10 years and to $16,470 in 30 years. |
| | | | | For other examples of the way that money can grow over time, try CNNMoney.com's Savings Calculator. |
| | | | | To put the power of compounding on your side, you have to start early. Suppose there are two siblings who both invest in Individual Retirement Accounts earning 8% a year. |
| | | | | The sister starts at age 20, and for the next 10 years she stuffs $3,000 a year into her IRA. At age 30, though, she stops and never adds another penny. |
| | | | | Her brother waits until age 30 to get started, but then dutifully salts away $3,000 a year for the rest of his life. Which sibling do you think will be better off? |
| | | | | In this case, the early bird will always be ahead. The sister reaches age 65 with more than $642,000, while her brother will have a little under $518,000 - about 20% less. |
| | | | | Of course, it's far better to start early AND keep it up. If both siblings started saving $3,000 a year in an IRA at 20, and kept it up until retirement, each would end up with nearly $1.2 million. |
| | | | | The point is that to put time on your side, you need to decide early which of the many possible financial goals are really worth pursuing - and start working toward them. |
| | | | | To get started, make a list of all the things that you'd need to feel secure, happy or fulfilled. These can range from the weighty (getting out of debt) to the luxurious (a Lamborghini). You don't need to prioritize them yet. |
| | | | | But you should try to put down all of the money-related things that will really get your motor started. And if you have a spouse or significant other, do this exercise together! Here are some common goals you may want to consider: |
| | | | | Accumulating enough savings to handle an emergency situation |
| | | | | Buying a house |
| | | | | Getting out of debt - and staying out |
| | | | | Ensuring that your parents are comfortable and well taken care of in their old age |
| | | | | Paying for your children's college education |
| | | | | Amassing enough wealth to retire comfortably |
| | | | | Once you have your list in hand, push on to the next section, where you'll determine which of these goals are most important to you. |
| | | | | After you've clarified your priorities, what do you do with your new insight? |
| | | | | Each time you spend more than pocket change on a purchase that doesn't help you attain one of your chief goals, ask yourself whether the outlay is really necessary. |
| | | | | For example, let's say your highest priority is achieving financial independence. And let's say you've saved $4,000 to take the family on a vacation. If you take the trip, you'll be an additional $4,000 from kissing the time clock good-bye. |
| | | | | (Further, actually, since $4,000 in savings would grow to nearly $20,000 invested for 20 years at a tax-deferred 8% - as CNNMoney.com's Savings Calculator would show.) |
| | | | | Of course, if your family has been expecting the trip for months, you'd be unfair to tell them that it's off. Instead, from the beginning you should have earmarked the cash for your investment portfolio and either planned a low-ticket vacation or worked a deal with family members to take the trip later. |
| | | | | OK, you say, but that choice isn't terribly difficult. You're more concerned about tougher decisions - choosing, for instance, among such priorities as health care, education and savings. |
| | | | | All are important. How do you resolve conflicts among them? No single approach will work for everyone - but here are some guidelines that help. |
| | | | | Is someone's health involved? If you believe that the ultimate purpose of money is to make life better, then you might decide that saving cash at the cost of your well-being - or that of a relative's - is a poor choice. For most people, someone's illness is the rainy day for which they've been saving. Most would agree there is no single financial goal more important than dealing with - and paying for -catastrophic illness. |
| | | | | How many people will be affected by my choice? Will one of your goals make your own life better while another gives equivalent help to two of your children? You could decide that when more people derive roughly equal benefit from a goal, its priority rises. |
| | | | | If two goals offer similar rewards, which causes the least harm? This method of selection is typically a last resort, but it can be useful when no other analysis helps you decide among options. |
| | | | | Most people, for example, have to decide between the kids' tuition and their own retirement savings. Well, if you know that you won't be able to live adequately on the money you expect from your pension and Social Security, then retirement savings should be paramount. As for the child in college, he can take out a tuition loan. |
| | | | | You can't put every nickel toward top priorities, of course - nor should you. Instead, you need to set aside part of your income for current pleasures, so long as you have enough cash left over to put toward your long-range goals. |
| | | | | Also, remember that as the years go by, your priorities will change. You'll need to reexamine and rank your needs regularly in order to use your money most effectively. |
| | | | | When you can save a dollar, you need to decide why you're putting it away. In addition, if you acquire the habit of quickly rating the urgency of every big purchase against the primary financial goals you've set for yourself, you'll eventually find that your spending is under control. |
| | | | | Here are examples of plans you might draw up to meet three of the most common objectives: getting out of debt, paying for college, or financing your retirement. |
| | | | | Getting out of debt |
| | | | | If you struggle to meet credit-card payments every month, then face it: You probably need to shed or consolidate some of that debt. |
| | | | | For example, suppose you owe $3,000 in outstanding credit-card debt at a 16% interest rate and a $10,000 car loan at 9%. To pay off both these obligations in a year, you'd need to pony up $1,147 a month. |
| | | | | But if you are a homeowner with equity in your property, you could borrow $13,000 on a home-equity loan at the same 9% and retire those other bills. Then your cost to pay off the home-equity loan in a year would be slightly lower - $1,137 a month - because you're no longer paying high credit-card rates of interest. |
| | | | | Moreover, because you can deduct the interest on most home-equity loans, you'd reduce your taxable income by $642 that year - a $212 saving for someone in the 33% federal tax bracket. In effect, the government would help pay off your expenses. |
| | | | | Of course, this kind of strategy works only if you also stop charging new items on your credit cards. |
| | | | | Paying for college |
| | | | | Tuition, room and board at a private college can cost upward of $30,000 a year, and that bill is projected to reach about $80,000 by the time this year's crop of newborns enters college. |
| | | | | Your children may qualify for financial aid either in the form of a scholarship or a loan, and many students work their way through college. |
| | | | | But if you want to spare your kids the burden of graduating in debt, there are a couple of good savings vehicles available to you. Most states now offer so-called 529 Plans - contributions go into in pre-selected mutual funds, grow tax-free each year, and withdrawals to pay tuition are also tax free. |
| | | | | You could also open a Coverdell Education Savings Account (previously called an Education IRA) that lets you put $2,000 a year, after taxes, into a bank account or other investments; earnings on that type of account are totally tax-free, provided the money is used for tuition when it's withdrawn. |
| | | | | It's amazing how far these plans will get you. For example, if you started putting $2,000 a year today into a Coverdell account earning 8%, after 18 years you'd have more than $80,000. |
| | | | | Financing a retirement |
| | | | | A popular rule of thumb says that retirees need only 70% of their pre-retirement income to maintain their lifestyle, since they no longer have to pay for such costs as commuting or for work clothes. |
| | | | | However, other costs go up in retirement, such as utility bills (if you're home all day), the price of hobbies and travel - and, of course, the cost of health care. In fact, some retirees find they need as much income in retirement as they spent while working. |
| | | | | Unfortunately, traditional pensions pay only a fraction of your salary, and Social Security won't make up the difference. In addition, the younger you are, the less certain you can be about how much money you'll receive at age 67 from any of the retirement plans you have today. |
| | | | | Why? Because Social Security benefits may be revised, and employers are free at any time to change their pension-plan formulas. (They can't do so retroactively - every retirement dollar that you've already qualified for is yours to keep.) Of course, Congress can change the laws governing retirement savings plans at any time. |
| | | | | Moreover, the recent economic downturn has underscored the point that stocks can be extremely volatile in the short term, even if they remain among the most consistent performers over long periods. Thus, the stock portion of any retirement portfolio needs to take into account the possibility of sharp downturns. |
| | | | | To make your retirement finances secure, you need to contribute to as many different plans as possible. If you have a 401(k), 403(b), or 457 program at work, put in as much money as you can. |
| | | | | Most employers will match your contributions, giving you money for retirement that you won't get any other way. If you have no retirement plan at work, contribute to an IRA. Note that contributions to all of these plans are tax-deferred, so that you, Uncle Sam, and your boss together could be adding to your retirement stash. |
| 7- Marketing your vision | Chapman University | Orange, CA | 2-Nov-13 | What's a Marketing Plan for a Startup? |
| | | | | http://technori.com/2013/01/3070-7-step-startup-marketing-plan/ |
| | | | | The 5 Key Questions you need to answer to build your plan |
| | | | | http://www.aspira.org/files/documents/entrepreneurship/session_07.pdf |
| | | | | What you may not know about Visuals and Marketing |
| | | | | http://www.wipo.int/export/sites/www/freepublications/en/intproperty/itc_p159/wipo_pub_itc_p159.pdf |
| | | | | Making optimal use of visuals in your product positioning |
| | | | | http://blog.kissmetrics.com/a-total-steal/ |
| 8- Product Management | OC Product Managers | Irvin, CA | 16-Oct-13 | You will find the information in the attached, its name (Product Management) |
| 9- 2013 Integrated Marketing Forum | Integrated Marketing Forum | Tustin, CA | 7-Nov-13 | How to design and execute an effective content marketing strategy |
| | | | | http://www.act-on.com/resources/whitepapers/6-best-practices-for-creating-a-content-marketing-strategy.pdf |
| | | | | http://www.vendasta.com/reputation-monitoring/review-monitoring |
| | | | | http://www.vendasta.com/reputation-monitoring/review-monitoring |
| 10- Mind's Eye Marketing
Workshop | california state
long beach
university | Laguna Beach, CA | 12-Dec-13 | Find focus & direction for your online marketing efforts in an |
| | | | | unplugged workshop combining marketing-oriented brainstorming |
| | | | | with a photography walk around the neighborhood. Learn secrets of |
| | | | | using words & images to tell your story, focus & learn to navigate in |
| | | | | the social media sea. |
| | | | | |
| | | | | Workshop will occur rain or shine. |
| | | | | Wear: Comfortable walking shoes and clothes suitable for a short |
| | | | | neighborhood photo walk. |
| | | | | Bring: Familiar point-and-shoot camera (ipads and Smartphones |
| | | | | okay), fully charged, with enough memory for multiple photos. |
| | | | | |
|
11- Social Media Marketing
Bootcamp Workshop
to Attract New Customers
| OGOING
What's going on?
Social Media Bootcamp | Irvine, CA | 15-Nov-13 | Confused about social media? Don't know where to start? Not sure if |
| | | | | there is any value or ROI? |
| | | | | What? oGoing invites you to an exclusive Social Media Marketing |
| | | | | boot camp workshop for small businesses, non-profits, startups, |
| | | | | SMBs or local organizations. This workshop is only limited to 10 |
| | | | | participants for maximum engagement and learning. oGoing founder |
| | | | | Sanjay Dalal, who has trained over 750 business owners and |
| | | | | professionals, will share tools and best practices that will accelerate |
| | | | | your online presence, and boost your business with latest social |
| | | | | media. He will help you become a social media expert in this crash |
| | | | | course that is both insightful and hands-on! Learn the inside secrets |
| | | | | (that only experts have) on how to rapidly attract, create, farm and |
| | | | | expand customers through cutting-edge social media. |
| | | | | "I definitely learned a lot and it got me motivated to have a larger |
| | | | | presence online and oGoing!" - Paul Imhoff, Director, Newmark |
| | | | | Knight Frank |
| | | | | Why? While the social media market is exploding with dozens of |
| | | | | leading websites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+, |
| | | | | YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram and more, Ogoing remains focused |
| | | | | on utilizing key tools that small business owners, entrepreneurs, |
| | | | | startup founders, and professionals need in order to rapidly grow |
| | | | | their social media presence. Majority of businesses do not have the |
| | | | | time, knowledge, resources and money to boost their brand and |
| | | | | obtain new leads using social media. This is where Ogoing helps! |
| | | | | Think of Ogoing as the business matchmaker. |
| | | | | Sanjay was awesome! Very informative presentation...not just useful
for social media but great marketing tips as well. Julian Reyes, |
| | | | | Director, The N.E.W. Program, Inc. |
| | | | | Learn the importance of social media marketing today in growing |
| | | | | your business now |
| | | | | Leverage social and online media to promote your brand, products, |
| | | | | services, news and events |
| | | | | Increase the number of quality connections, contacts, followers and |
| | | | | fans on major networks |
| | | | | Connect with businesses and professionals using social media, and |
| | | | | grow your business network |
| | | | | Jumpstart your lead acquisition and sales using the latest promotion |
| | | | | tools and best practices |
| | | | | Facilitate five star customer feedback and recommendations, and |
| | | | | improve customer loyalty |
| | | | | Provide excellent customer service using social media, and make |
| | | | | your customers happy |
| | | | | Learn how to boost social presence on oGoing, Facebook, LinkedIn, |
| | | | | Twitter, Google+, Blogs... |
| 12- Financial Strategies | eMBA
ALUMNI
PROJECT | Costa Mesa, CA | 6-Nov-13 |
| | | | | Long-term strategic goals |
| | | | | |
| | | | | I |
| | | | | Profitable growth |
| | | | | In order to achieve our long-term sales growth goal, we will stay |
| | | | | focused in coming years on markets where we are already |
| | | | | established: the Nordic region, many European countries, South |
| | | | | Africa and Australia. In addition, we will establish a stronger local |
| | | | | presence in selected markets such as North America, the UK, South |
| | | | | America (Brazil) and Asia (Thailand and India). |
| | | | | |
| | | | | Performance |
| | | | | |
| | | | | Our efficiency improvement program was successfully finalised in |
| | | | | 2010. We have now reduced Saab’s cost base by SEK 1.5 billion |
| | | | | over |
| | | | | a three-year period. The market is constantly changing, which |
| | | | | requires that we keep up with developments and in many cases that |
| | | | | we stay on the forefront of change. This is why we continue to |
| | | | | improve efficiencies in operations, focus on capital efficiency and |
| | | | | generate strong cash flow. |
| | | | | |
| | | | | Portfolio |
| | | | | |
| | | | | To achieve our growth target, we have to invest partly in product |
| | | | | innovation and partly in renewal and upgrades of existing products |
| | | | | and systems. Investments in the portfolio will be prioritised in areas |
| | | | | where we already have competitive technology and/or a competitive |
| | | | | market position and our aim is to strengthen or retain our unique |
| | | | | systems expertise. |
| | | | | People |
| | | | | |
| | | | | Our employees are the foundation that enables us to implement our |
| | | | | strategy and achieve our strategic and financial goals. Our market is |
| | | | | changing, and successful changes require confidence in the future. |
| | | | | We want to be an employer of choice for current and future |
| | | | | employees who seek development opportunities and continuous |
| | | | | change. |
| | | | | |
| | | | | Long-term financial goals |
| | | | | |
| | | | | Growth |
| | | | | |
| | | | | Over a business cycle, our organic sales growth will average 5 per |
| | | | | cent per year. It is possible that growth will also be achieved through |
| | | | | acquisitions if value-creating opportunities arise within our priority |
| | | | | areas in the years ahead. |
| | | | | Operating margin |
| | | | | The operating margin after depreciation/amortisation (EBIT) will be at |
| | | | | least 10 per cent. |
| | | | | |
| | | | | Equity/asset ratio |
| | | | | |
| | | | | The equity/assets ratio shall exceed 30 per cent. |
| | | | | Dividend policy |
| | | | | |
| | | | | Saab’s long-term dividend objective is to distribute 20–40 per cent of |
| | | | | net income over a business cycle to shareholders. |
| 13- Crowd Funding and
Recent Developments
in Capital Raising
| OC Tech
Alliance | Newport Beach, CA | | I attached a PDF of Crowd Funding |
| | | | | Please look at the link |
| | | | | http://books.google.com/books?hl=ar&lr=&id=hdLc_yaPz5YC&oi=fnd&pg=PP2&dq=goals+of++Capital+Raising&ots=pd1aAJPRcJ&sig=2w4u1S5_EOeN6qxTcNyFn80j6LQ#v=onepage&q=goals%20of%20%20Capital%20Raising&f=false |
| 14- Leadership Development
and Teambuilding
| Skillpath Training
Compumaster. HRC
Professional business
training since 1989
| Anaheim. CA | 2-Dec-13 | Please look at attached pdf (Leadership) |
Majed1
my_courses.xlsx
