DRIVING ARI FLEET MANAGEMENT WITH REAL-TIME ANALYTICS Automotive Resources International, better known as simple ARI, is the world's largest privately-held company for vehicle fleet management services. ARI is headquartered in Mt. Laurel, New Jersey and has 2,500 employees and offices throughout North America, Europe, the UK and Hong Kong. The company manages more than 1,000,000 vehicles in the US, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Europe. Businesses that need vehicles for shipments (trucks, vans, cars, ships, and rail cars) may choose to manage their own fleet of vehicle or they may outsource fleet management to companies such as ARI which specialize in these services. ARI manages the entire life cycle and operation of a fleet of vehicles for its customers, from up-front specification and acquisition to resale, including financing, maintenance, fuel management, and risk management services such as driver safety training and accident management. ARI also maintains six call centers in North America that operate 24/7, 365 days a year to support customers' drivers, and suppliers who expect access to real-time actionable information. Providing this information has become increasingly challenging. Operating a single large commercial vehicle fleet generates high volumes of complex data, such as data on fuel consumption, maintenance, licensing and compliance, A fuel transaction, for example, requires data on state taxes paid, fuel grade, total sale, amount sols, and time and place of purchase. A simple brake job and preventive maintenance checkup generates dozens of records for each component that is serviced. Each part and service performed on a vehicle is tracked using American Trucking Association codes. ARI collects and analyzes over 14,000 pieces of data per vehicle. Then multiply the data by hundreds of fleets, some with up to 10,000 vehicles, all operating simultaneously throughout the globe, and you'll have an idea of the enormous volume of data ARI needs to manage, both for itself and for its customers. ARI provided its customers with detailed information about their fleet operations, but the type of information it could deliver was very limited. For example, ARI could generate detailed reports on line-item expenditures, vehicle purchases, maintenance records, and other operational information presented as simple spreadsheets, charts, or graphs, but it was not possible to analyze all the data to spot trends and make recommendations. ARI was able to analyze data customer by customer, but it was not able to aggregate data across its entire customer base. For instance, if ARI was managing a pharmaceutical company's vehicle fleet, its information systems could not benchmark that fleet's performance against others in the industry. That type of problem required too much manual work and time, and still didn't deliver the level of insight management thought was possible. What's more, in order to create reports, ARI had to go through internal subject matter experts in various aspects of fleet operations, who were called "reporting power users". Every request for information was passed to these power users. A request for a report would take 5 days to fill. If the report was unsatisfactory, it would go back to the report writer to make changes. ARI's process for analyzing its data was extremely drawn out. In mid-2011, ARI implemented SAP BusinessObjects Explorer to give customers the enhanced ability to access data and run their own reports. SAP BusinessObjects Explorer is a business intelligence tool that enables business users to view, sort and analyze business intelligence data. Users search through data sources using an iTunes-like interface. They do not have to create queries to search the data and results are shown with a chart that indicates the best information match. The graphical representation of results changes as the user asks further questions of the data. In early 2012, ARI integrated SAP BusinessObjects Explorer with HANA, SAP's in-memory computing platform that is deplorable as an on-premise appliance (hardware and software) or in the cloud. HANA is optimized for performing real-time analytics and handling very high volumes of operational and transactional data in real time. HANA's in-memory analytics queries data stored in random access memory (RAM) instead of on a hard disk or flash storage. Things started happening quickly after that. When ARI's controller wanted an impact analysis of the company's top 10 customers, SAP HANA produced the result in 3 to 31/2 seconds. In ARI's old systems environment, this task would have been assigned to a power user versed in using reporting tools, specifications would have to be drawn up and a program designed for that specific query, a process that would have taken about 36 hours. Using HANA, ARI is now able to quickly mine its vast data resources and generate predictions based on the result. For example, the company can produce precise figures on what it costs to operate a fleet of a certain size over a particular route across specific industries during a certain type of weather and predict what the impact of changes in any of the variables. And it can do so nearly as easily as providing customers with a simple history of their expenditures on fuel. With such helpful information ARI provides more value to its customers. HANA has also reduced the time required for each transaction handled by ARI's call centers- from the time a call center staffer takes a call to retrieving and delivering the requested information-5 percent. Since call center staff account for 40 percent of ARI's direct overhead, that time reduction translates into major cost savings. ARI plans to make some of these real-time reporting and analytic capabilities available on mobile devices, which will enable customers to instantly approve a variety of operation procedures, such as authorizing maintenance repairs. Customers will also be able to use the mobile tools for instant insight into their fleet operations, down to a level of detail such as a specific vehicles's tire history. Question: summarize this article in 4 paragraphs using your own words.

Economist and Nobel Laureate Joseph E. Stiglitz argues that the IMF has failed its mission to secure global economic stability. He identifies the reasons for this failure with changes in the IMF’s mission and economic policies. In his role as Senior Vice President and Chief Economist at the World Bank in the late 1990s, Stiglitz was privy to the policies and failures of the IMF. In his book, Globalization and Its Discontents, Stiglitz lays out an argument for why the IMF has failed in its mission to ensure global economic stability. Stiglitz argues that the IMF’s policies not only do not work, but often make matters worse for the countries in crisis. He highlights several problematic policies:

Capital market liberalization. The IMF pressures countries that petition for IMF loans to open their markets to outside investment capital. Rather than help matters, this approach often makes matters worse as it destabilizes the economy of the country as well as the global economy. Investors may invest huge sums in a country only to pull those investments at a moment’s notice, causing acute economic crises.

Latin America as the template. Stiglitz says that many of the the ideas of the “Washington Consensus” were based on the experience with Latin America. The economic growth in these countries had not been sustained, governments had let budgets run out of control, and loose monetary policy had led to rampant inflation. The belief of the Washington Consensus was that this had happened as a result of excessive government intervention in the economy. So, if government intervention was the problem, then government intervention should be limited. The Washington Consensus pushed for policies such as capital market liberalization. Stiglitz notes that even if this approach was appropriate for some Latin American countries, it did not make sense to apply this policy blindly to other countries in very different situations where this kind of policy might make matters much worse.

Insensitivity to strength of local markets. Stiglitz says that the IMF policy forcing rapid trade liberalization has not only not worked, but does not follow lessons learned from history. He notes the cases of the U.S. and Japan. Both countries had trade protection policies in place until their industries were strong enough to compete in a global market. However, IMF policies forcing trade liberalization on a developing country where industries are not strong enough can actually cause more harm. Local industries could not compete, and rising interest rates made job creation virtually impossible. Says Stiglitz, “Liberalization has, thus, too often, not been followed by the promised growth, but my increased misery.”

Taxation without Representation. Stiglitz notes that even though the IMF is a public institution, funded by money from taxpayers around the world, it is not held accountable to the interests of these taxpayers. He identifies the problem of governance as one of the prime “underlying factors” for problems with the IMF.   (Center on Law & Globalization)

Related articles about IMF/Work Bank/Globalization by Joseph Stiglitz

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Identify a criticism made by Joseph Stiglitz in regards to the IMF, World Bank, or globalization. In your response, provide the following:

Summarize Stiglitz's criticism and provide a citation to the article you selected (include website address if applicable)

Using two or more academic sources, dispute or support Stiglitz's criticism (provide full citations to sources)

Determine the solutions to each of the following independent cases: (a.) Collings College has annual fixed operating costs of $12,500,000 and variable operating costs of $1,000 per student. Tuition is $8,000 per student for the coming academic year, with a projected enrollment of 1,500 students. Expected revenues from endowments and federal and state grants total $250,000. Determine the amount the college must obtain from other sources. $Answer

(b.) The Collings College Student Association is planning a fall concert. Expected costs (renting a hall, hiring a band, etc.) are $30,000. Assuming 3,000 people attend the concert, determine the break-even price per ticket. How much will the association lose if this price is charged and only 2,700 tickets are sold? (Do not use a negative sign with your answer.) $Answer

(c.) City Hospital has a contract with the city to provide indigent health care on an outpatient basis for $25 per visit. The patient will pay $5 of this amount, with the city paying the balance ($20). Determine the amount the city will pay if the hospital has 10,000 patient visits. $Answer

(d.) A civic organization is engaged in a fund-raising program. On Civic Sunday, it will sell newspapers at $1.25 each. The organization will pay $0.75 for each newspaper. Costs of the necessary permits, signs, and so forth are $500. Determine the amount the organization will raise if it sells 5,000 newspapers. $Answer

(e.) Christmas for the Needy is a civic organization that provides Christmas presents to disadvantaged children. The annual costs of this activity are $5,000, plus $10 per present. Determine the number of presents the organization can provide with $20,000. Answer presents

Pick a profession that you might be interested in that demands some knowledge in the life sciences. From the abbreviate course outline provided below, choose the 5 units you think are most important, then explain what you must learn in detail to give you the best academic preparation for your profession. Be sure to relate to specific concepts learned within each unit of your chosen units. Must be at least 500 words.

Animal Physiology; review major animal phyla; vertebrate reproduction, embryology and hormone regulation; circulation, digestion and exchange systems; excretion and kidney nephrons; the vertebrate immune system; neurons and nervous systems

Carbon and the Macromolecules of Living Things; structure and function of carbon, carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, nucleic acids, and enzyme kinetics.  

Ecology; ecosystems, biomes, cycles of materials, communities, succession, populations.  

Cell Structure, Function, and Division; cell theory, structure and function of organelles, membrane transport, cell to cell interactions, mitosis, carcinogenesis.

Respiration and Photosynthesis; ATP, fundamentals of metabolism, energy from nutrients, anaerobic and aerobic respiration, how plants convert solar energy to chemical energy.

Mendelian Genetics; meiosis, laws of heredity, punnett squares, human traits, genetic disorders, chromosomal abnormalities.

Molecular Genetics; DNA function, structure, and replication; RNA transcription and translation; gene regulation; genetic engineering.  

Classification and Evolution; taxonomy, species defined, classic darwinism, mechanisms of evolution, fossil formation and dating, the evolution of self replicating molecules through vertebrates and humans, how species evolve, and a genetic view of evolution.  

Organism Survey (primarily microorganisms); viruses, bacteria, protists, and fungi.

Botany; classification of plants, basic structure and function of tissues, and physiology.

For this assignment, you will use the six-step hypothesis testing process (noted below) to run and interpret a correlation analysis using SPSS. The following vignette will inform you of the context for this assignment. A data file is provided in the week’s resources for use in this assignment.

A manager is interested in studying the associations between a number of variables. These variables are age, years of experience, level of education, engagement, job satisfaction, and performance level. She thinks that employees with more years of experience are more engaged and satisfied. She thinks that younger employees will perform at a higher level, on average.

1. State the null and alternative hypotheses.
2. Select the significance level.
3. Select the test statistics and calculate its value.
4. Identify critical values for the test statistics and state the decision rule concerning when to reject or fail to reject the null hypothesis.
5. Compare the calculated and critical values to reach a conclusion for the null hypothesis.
6. Explain the related business decision.

After conducting the above analysis please structure your paper as follows:

• Introduction to the assignment
• Hypotheses
• Results of the analysis (Hint. You may use an APA-style table to display these data. SPSS output images are not in APA style).
• Did the analysis support each of the hypotheses?
• Explain what decisions the manager might make using these findings.

Length: 4 to 6 pages not including title and reference page

References: Include a minimum of 3 scholarly resources.

Your paper should demonstrate thoughtful consideration of the ideas and concepts presented in the course and provide new thoughts and insights relating directly to this topic. Your response should reflect scholarly writing and current APA standards. Be sure to adhere to Northcentral University's Academic Integrity Policy.

Upload your document and click the Submit to Dropbox button.

Analyzing the macroeconomic status of a country examines the behaviors within a whole economy. In addition to the macroeconomic factors introduced in the reading materials, other components must be considered when analyzing the economic status of a country. The first component is the misery index, which is the unemployment rate and the inflation rate combined. Another consideration is the economic freedom index, which is an exploration of the overall position of a country in comparison to other countries. Finally, there is the human development index, which focuses on the people within the economy, not just the economic growth within a country. For this assignment, compare the United States and one other selected country of your choice approved by the instructor. Throughout this course, multiple resources have been included in all topic materials to provide websites that will assist in the research required for this assignment. Collect the economic data outlined in the "Country Analysis Matrix," located in Topic Materials and conduct additional research through a minimum of three readings from The Economist. You must provide citations for the three articles from The Economist. In addition to completing the matrix, write a 250-word summary identifying two major economic strengths and two major weaknesses for your selected country. Focus on identifying factors that contribute to the country's overall performance and support the growth of the economy as a whole. For example, has the country grown primarily through export promotion or domestic growth? Finally, point out any significant differences you observe between your selected country and the United States. Use the matrix you have developed and the readings from The Economist to support your analysis. GCU format is required for essays only. Solid academic writing is always expected. For all assignment delivery options, documentation of sources should be presented.

Question 6

Undocumented workers:

are not subject to the protections of federal anti-discrimination laws.

have no legal employment rights per case law.

may be granted citizenship if an employer discriminated against them.

treated the same as other employees and able to pursue their legal claims.

Question 7

The subminimum wage provision:

guarantees all employees must be paid the current federal minimum wage.

allows certain workers with disabilities (with DOL certification) and students employed at colleges and universities (payment at 85 percent of the minimum wage is allowed with DOL certification) to be paid less than current federal minimum wage.

requires employers to pay time and a half to all employees who work more than 40 hours in a work week.

protects employees for predatory employers who seek to pay less then minimum wage in poverty-stricken areas of the country.

  Question 8

Employees who are paid a salary:

are never paid an overtime pay rate because they are considered management.

are required to earn overtime if they work more than 50 hours in a week.

may be paid overtime based on the results of the “salary level test”.

must be paid every two weeks and earn extra paid time off related to the number of hours over 40 they work each week.

Question 9

Employers offering unpaid internships should:

give interns a W-4 so they can deduct the time spent working on their federal taxes.

have a college oversee it and offer academic credit.

change to paid internships only to avoid FLSA violations.

only hire students age 16 – 18, while they are in high school

You’re working for the DOJ as an economist in the Economic Analysis Group (EAG) group. You’ve been asked by Nancy Rose, the chief economist at the DOJ and airline-industry expert, to review the American Airlines – US Airways merger. Given the recent consolidation in the airline industry prior to this proposed merger, she along with other regulators are very concerned about the approval of further mergers.

1. American and US Air have claimed that there will be substantial variable costs savings when they merge (as is often the case with proposed mergers).   Suppose in a representative market, there are 4 firms: American, US Air, Southwest, and Delta. Further, suppose that demand is of a constant elasticity form, Q=p^-E.
   1. What is a reasonable value for E based on academic or government research?
   2. Suppose further that the marginal costs for American, US Air and Delta equal $5, and marginal costs for Southwest equal $4, while fixed costs are zero. Take your value you suggest for E above, and calculate the Cournot equilibrium before any merger takes place.   What are the equilibrium quantities and market price?
   3. Suppose the proposed merger is permitted, what happens to equilibrium quantities and the market price? Does this seem like a reasonable prediction? Why or why not?
   4. What would costs need to fall to for the merged entity to do no harm to consumers?

Given your modeling efforts, what would you recommend regarding the unconditional approval of the merger? Are there conditions under which you would let the firms merge? Think big in terms of requests to both airlines and airports that would make you comfortable with the merger being ap

Please select the Case Studies presented below and provide a minimum 4-page paper (not including title and reference page) answering the eleven questions listed. This assignment must be in APA 6th ed. format. A minimum of two academic and/or professional references is required. If you are unfamiliar with how to properly format an APA paper (title page, introduction, conclusion, margins, etc.) please schedule an appointment with a Writing Coach prior to submitting your paper. The questions are as followed (100 pts):

1. What are the facts of the case?

2. Are all the elements required in a negligence suit present?

3. What standard of care is required?

4. Who would you consider to be the potential plaintiff and defendant?

5. How would you argue for the plaintiff?

6. What evidence would you present?

7. How would you defend the defendant?

8. What are your defense options?

9. If you were on the jury, what would your finding be, based on only the facts as presented?

10. If you find the defendant responsible, what damages would you award, and for what reasons?

11. What are your options if you, as plaintiff or defendant, are unhappy with the jury’s decision?

Case Study One:

A patient died after her third cerebral hemorrhage. When the patient was admitted to the hospital following a cerebral hemorrhage, her physician determined that she should be given a specific drug to reduce her blood pressure and make her condition operable, and he directed its administration. For an unexplained reason, the drug was not administered. The patient’s blood pressure rose, and after another hemorrhage the patient died.