Managing Process and Projects in ANLG

Introduction The banking industry is just part of the much larger financial services market. Like all large retail banks, ANLG has had the task of improving the performance of its operational processes which are responsible for generating and providing the bank’s services.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Managing Process and Projects in ANLG specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This has had to be achieved while at the same time keeping some factors constant; the service delivery to the banking clientele remaining top notch and the costs incurred in the process kept to a minimal. In looking at this particular case of ANLG, the entire operational process yields both inputs and outputs which are based on the various activities involved in the process. The operational process is basically a link between inputs, outputs and resources and how the various activities involved transform the inputs into outputs. The sub ject of managing processes and projects basically looks into a system which is made up of various processes. In each process, inputs are transformed into outputs and all this involves planning and designing the production, the actual production of the item in question, delivery and all support variables, all which translate into the success of the objectives being met. The core functions are the development of the services and products that will be the outputs of the operational processes, the operations involved in the entire process as well as the marketing function which is somehow a subsidiary factor in the entire operation process. Support functions include the accounting and finance aspect, the technical factor, human resources function which looks at personnel or staff, and the function that relates to acquiring any relevant information to the given process. These are just a few examples which will vary with each operational process. Operational Processes The Call Centre Depa rtment This is a department run by the Call Centre Manager and its main operations are cantered on dealing with customer service enquiries which are basically requests for information on products or services that they need clarification on.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The calls received by the Call Centre Agents many times overwhelm them during the day and this is mainly because these are the operational hours for the banks. At night, not many people will think of making enquiries. The customers will want information on loans, their debit cards, various accounts operated by the bank and any services the bank may be providing (Ackoff). Fig. 1: Showing the operational processes in the Call Centre Department Facilities and staff are the major resources that are classified as inputs. In this case we have the call centre manager who manages and plans for the centre, the call centre agents who operate the calls, and equipment used to handle the calls such as the telephones and computers. The operator receives the call from the customer and first captures the caller’s details which may include, but are not limited to the customer’s name, customer’s account number if they have an account with the bank, their address and contacts. The queries presented by the customer are then entered into the system. Depending on what subject the caller wanted information on, they are given a feedback and in case the agent can’t provide satisfactory answers, they are rerouted to a more qualified person to handle the call, or are told to hold the line as their request is processed. For some cases, the Call Centre agent may have to call the customer back at a later time. Deliverables include providing the customer with answers to their enquiries and feeding the system with any information that may need to be looked into so as to improve the servi ce delivery (Davenport).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Managing Process and Projects in ANLG specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Limitations The Call Centre Manager can clearly view all the calls being received by the operators and those that are yet to be received. Any customer calling continuously for a given amount of time will eventually give up if their calls are not answered and may assume they are being ignored. With a limited number of operators, not all calls can be attended to and this cuts down on the efficiency of the department in satisfying their callers. Some of the callers fail to have their queries answered while others will probably receive unsatisfactory replies because the operators are trying to attend to the large number of callers. At night the exact opposite scenario is played. Operators are practically redundant with hardly any calls being received (Deming). Filling in any vacancies in th is department is no mean feat. It is both time and resource consuming. An operator has to have knowledge of the banking operations and should be able to handle 15 simple banking enquiries. The entire recruitment process and training of the operator takes up to 8 weeks, and in the meantime the Call Centre strains the meagre staff and resources it has. Recommendations An automated system could be put in place to capture incoming calls where the callers would leave their details and queries so that they can be contacted at a later time. This way, the operators running the Call Centre in the night can make a follow up of these enquiries. Customers are left feeling happy and well attended to and definitely and the bank retains its clientele. The Personal Credit Control Department The Manager of this department is tasked with overseeing that the staffs attending to customers, who have surpassed their overdraft amounts, either bounce any cheques that may have been drawn or send a letter in forming the customer about the state of their account or transaction. This department only deals with individual accounts because those belonging to corporate entities need more interpretation. They are therefore handled by a different Fig. 2: Showing the operational processes in the Personal Credit Control DepartmentAdvertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Depositing cheques and drafts is actually a form of credit exchange. If the cheque drawn is valid, then the person whose name and details appear on the cheque is paid following instructions to the bank indicated on the cheque. When a draft is moved by authorization to a specific bank, it is deposited there and is equivalent to a cash deposit. In both cases, no actual money in the form of notes and or coins is used in the transactions so it is entirely of a credit nature. In the cases where the account against which the cheque is drawn has insufficient funds, the cheque bounces and as a result the bearer of the cheque is not credited. The department I thus tasked with informing them of the state of the transaction. Such a transaction is not detailed and involves very few components as opposed to dealing with corporate accounts which could have many transactions in one particular account (Jams hid). Limitations Having each line of business operation, in this case, personal credit con trol and corporate credit control running as separate entities means that the activities are not centralized. More resources are needed to effectively run each entity yet the outputs are similar. Without restructuring the back office operations, operating costs are exponentially increased. The same methodology of running the processes is employed in all processes and efficiency is reduced. Recommendations Most banking institution has developed into target retail institutions in as far as the operations of the bank are concerned. Many of the operations are centralized and are structured such that particular service centres have both shared functions and services. All operations run by the bank are part of this structure. As a result you will find that whether it is personal banking or corporate banking, they will all be part of the shared Services Centre. The only exemption probably might arise in cases where one service for example, personal banking has just been introduced. It may operate remotely for a period of time, but should be merged with other centralized operations within a given time frame. Another solution to having similar operations running with up to half the cost would be to manage operations, for example IT Operations, that sustain back office processes as a distinct and separate function that needs a separate structuring (Juran). The Voucher Processing Centre The centre is equipped with machines that translate cheques. The cheques are delivered to the centre from various branches of the same bank in a given location. Since the banks are closed during the weekend, Mondays, which mark the beginning of the business week, are quite hectic as they record a large number of deposits. The fact that the machines have such a big work load, they are likely to breakdown more often and this greatly affects the running of the centre. With fewer machines to work with, many customers’ transactions are left pending and this creates a backlog. Fig.3: Sho wing the operational processes in the Voucher Processing Centre Fig.4: Showing the additional operational processes in the Voucher Processing Centre The cheques are received and the information displayed on them is encoded or converted. The output which still comes in form of the processed cheques enables the relevant accounts to either be credited or debited. Limitations The inputs in this particular process are limited and this greatly affects the entire process because the transformation aspect is greatly restricted. The encoding machines are the main facility that runs the entire process, apart from the staff that operates them. Having even one machine down affects the outputs and as such customer feedback is not expected to be encouraging. Recommendations Another system apart from wholly relying on the voucher encoding machines should be introduced. This way, even if one of the machines breaks down, or even when the workload is large, the entire process is not affected. In th e end, the output is what matters, I this case, that the customers receive the services they expect. High Net worth Banking In some cases, it is also referred to as prestige banking. A service provided by the bank for its wealthy clientele who pay to have all the banking services offered at their beck and call. The bank therefore has to be extremely flexible to meet their demands. To give the entire aspect of High Net worth Banking, the personal touch it is characteristically defined by, particular banking personnel is assigned a number of accounts to attend to and this way gets familiar and â€Å"personal† with the customer, but maintains all the professionalism expected. Limitations Banking personnel just like any other employee will be required to have leave days or probably attend training sessions organized by the bank. In such cases, when a particular customer calls wanting the services of a particular agent who is either not in office, or engaged elsewhere, the â€Å" personal† factor is subject to being affected. Some customers may become adamant and even threaten to withdraw their accounts, citing that they are not getting their money’s worth. Other times, their demands may seem too much when they force their contacts within the bank to run all over the place to attend to them, be in at their homes or places of work. Recommendations Customers should be made to understand that the entire theme of personal banking means that the bank gives then extra attention, but maintains that any available personnel can attend to them. Two or even up to three people can be assigned to one particular account. This way the personal theme is not entirely corroded. The ‘4vs’ approach looks at four factors in the operational process and these are volume, variety, variation in demand and visibility. Looking at the above back office operations in terms of volume, the Call Centre is swapped with very many calls and each staff of the centre i s kept bust especially during the day when the volume of calls is highest. As a result there is a low unit cost in the department, higher systemization and high repeatability of processes which involve the calls received and the information exchanged. The Credit Control department specializes in cheques and drafts so their volume is only relevant to these two processes. It is relatively low and each staff member performs more as pertains to the task at hand and less to do with the entire system. As such there are higher unit costs. The voucher processing centre handles only cheques, but at a high volume and therefore experiences the same implications as the Call centre. The Prestige or â€Å"High Net worth’ subsidiary company experiences fewer customers, hence a fewer volume of operations. The implications are similar to the credit control department (Ludwig). With regard to variety, the call centre and voucher processing centre is more complex and flexible and as much as th ey may incur higher unit costs, they are able to meet customer demands. The credit control department and subsidiary company dealing with rich clients on the other hand both handle less in terms of variety. They experience well-defined routine, properly standardized procedures that are regular and all at low unit costs. Variation in demand in the call centre and voucher processing centre is dependent on the capacity that can be handled. This is also affected by the facilities in place and personnel available. One main advantage is that any changes in demand can be anticipated, though a downside is that it all comes at a high unit cost. The credit control department and subsidiary company dealing with rich clients on the other hand, experience a stable schedule of events, high use of available resources, resulting to low unit costs. Visibility focuses on the outputs of each process. There is a very short time frame between requesting of services or products and when they are expected to be delivered and this causes a short tolerance in relation to what is expected. In the call centre and ‘high net worth† company, contentment by the customer is based on what they observe and perceive. Personnel in these departments should be equipped with the relevant skills needed to handle customers in these instances. Proper communication skills are an asset in both cases. A high unit cause is however realized. The voucher processing centre is also reliable to a great extent on the visibility aspect which will bring about similar implications as seen in both the call centre and prestige banking company. In the credit control department there is a time frame between production and delivery of the services to the customer. Low skills in customer handling are required and most of the process doesn’t really rely on the input of the staff. Higher unit costs are expected. Other similarities that can be noticed in all the four back office units are the fact that a ll operational processes make use of some form of technology. For all the operations, some form of telephone activity or computer related task is involved though to different variations and volumes. The voucher processing centre also incorporates encoding machines. All four back office units have response issues of some kind. These are either within the department or between one department and other. In other scenarios it also involves the customer who in most cases is the final recipient in the complete process. These four operational processes also forecast on demand, otherwise the performance objectives cease to be relevant. Measures are also put in place to monitor capacity and location concerns that directly affect the operations of the departments. These of course vary from one back office to another. for instance, the call centre doesn’t have to be near the customers calling in to handle their enquiries, but the â€Å"high net worth† subsidiary company has to pu t capacity and location in mind to be able to provide that personal touch it thrives on to maintain its clientele. All operations have both contractors who provide the products and services needed to be able to meet their objectives as well as customers who are the final recipients of the products and services after they have undergone the transformation process. In the For the call centre it is telephones and computers, whereas the credit control and voucher. All these back office operations also have planning and recruitment issues in relation to their activities and staff. Common sets of principles therefore apply only when the performance objectives of any given process are similar in respect to certain factors. The quality of services or products has to be even. Some services like the call centre are to all customers of the banking institution irrespective of the account you hold or how wealthy you are. The â€Å"high net worth† department on the other hand is for only t he rich clientele. Another factor is that the speed at which the services or products are delivered has to be at par. For some it is fast depending on the customer being attended to, while others it is slow. Dependability is another element. Some services are dependent on time, others facilities, staff or other resources. Flexibility should also be considered. Some processes follow a fixed routine and schedule while others can be manipulated with to suit the output required. Cost is a very important component as well because it is directly proportional to how productive a given process is and whether at the end of the day it was a worthwhile venture (Senge). To â€Å"fine tune† the improvement of business processes in relation to the operations the different skills and approaches that are probably being referred to are the â€Å"4vs†; volume, variety, variation in demand and visibilty as well as the common sets of principles. This is because if flexibility, quality, sp eed, dependabilty and cost are considered, the capturing, transformation and delivery of services ad products will be greatly improved because these factors greatly affect operation processes. Works Cited Ackoff, Russell. Ackoff Centre for Advancement of Systems Approaches, 2009. Web. Davenport, T. H. Process Innovation: Reengineering work through Information Technology, Harvard Business School Press, 1993. Deming, W. Edwards. The New Economics for industry, government and Education. Second Edition MIT Press, 1994. Jamshid, Gharajedaghi. Systems Thinking: Managing Chaos and Complexity A Platform for Designing Business Architecture. Elsevier Inc., 2006. Juran, J.M. Juran on quality by design. The Free Press, Division of Macmillan Inc., 1992. Ludwig, Bertalanffy. General Systems Theory George Braziller Inc., 1968. Senge, Peter M. The Fifth Discipline, The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization. Random House, 2006. This essay on Managing Process and Projects in ANLG was written and submitted by user Emersyn M. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

The U.S. And Great Britain Special Relationship

The U.S. And Great Britain Special Relationship The rock-solid relationship between the United States and Great Britain that President Barack Obama described during his March 2012 meetings with British Prime Minister David Cameron was, in part, forged in the fires of World Wars I and II. Despite fervent wishes to remain neutral in both conflicts, the U.S. allied with Great Britain both times. World War I World War I erupted in August 1914, the result of long-standing European imperial grievances and arms races. The United States sought neutrality in the war, having just experienced its own brush with imperialism that included the Spanish-American War, 1898, (of which Great Britain approved), and the disastrous Filipino Insurrection that soured Americans on further foreign entanglements. Nevertheless, the United States expected neutral trade rights; that is, it wanted to trade with belligerents on both sides of the war, including Great Britain and Germany. Both of those countries opposed the American policy, but while Great Britain would stop and board U.S. ships suspected of carrying goods to Germany, German submarines took the more dire action of sinking American merchant ships. After 128 Americans died when a German U-Boat sank the British luxury liner Lusitania (surreptitiously hauling weapons in its hold), U.S. President Woodrow Wilson and his Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan successfully got Germany to agree to a policy of restricted submarine warfare. Incredibly, that meant a sub had to signal a targeted ship that it was about to torpedo it so that personnel could debark the vessel. In early 1917, however, Germany renounced restricted sub warfare and returned to unrestricted sub warfare. By now, American merchants were showing an unabashed bias toward Great Britain, and the British rightly feared renewed German sub attacks would cripple their trans-Atlantic supply lines. Great Britain actively courted the United States- with its manpower and industrial might- to enter the war as an ally. When British intelligence intercepted a telegram from Germanys Foreign Secretary Arthur Zimmerman to Mexico encouraging Mexico to ally with Germany and create a diversionary war on Americas southwestern border, they quickly notified Americans. The Zimmerman Telegram was genuine, although at first glance it seems like something British propagandists might fabricate to get the U.S. in the war. The telegram, combined with Germanys unrestricted sub warfare, was the tipping point for the United States. It declared war on Germany in April 1917. The U.S. enacted a Selective Service Act, and by Spring 1918 had enough soldiers in France to help England and France turn back a massive German offensive. In Fall 1918, under the command of General John J. Blackjack Pershing, American troops flanked the German lines while British and French troops held the German front in place. The Meuse-Argonne Offensive forced Germany to surrender. Treaty of Versailles Compared to France, Great Britain and the United States took moderate stances at the post-war treaty talks in Versailles, France. France, having survived two German invasions in the last 50 years, wanted severe punishments for Germany, including the signing of a war guilt clause and the payment of onerous reparations. The U.S. and Britain were not so adamant about the reparations, and the U.S. loaned money to Germany in the 1920s to help with its debt. However, the U.S. and Great Britain did not agree on everything. President Wilson forwarded his optimistic Fourteen Points as a blueprint for post-war Europe. The plan included an end to imperialism and secret treaties; national self-determination for all countries; and a global organization- the League of Nations- to mediate disputes. Great Britain could not accept Wilsons anti-imperialist aims, but it did accept the League, which Americans- fearing more international involvement- did not. Washington Naval Conference In 1921 and 1922, the U.S. and Great Britain sponsored the first of several naval conferences designed to give them dominance in total tonnage of battleships. The conference also sought to limit a Japanese naval buildup. The conference resulted in a ratio of 5:5:3:1.75:1.75. For every five tons the U.S. and British had in battleship displacement, Japan could have only three tons, and France and Italy could each have 1.75 tons. The agreement fell apart in the 1930s when militaristic Japan and fascist Italy disregarded it, even though Great Britain tried to extend the pact. World War II When England and France declared war on Germany after its invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, the United States again tried to remain neutral. When Germany defeated France, then attacked England in the summer of 1940, the resulting Battle of Britain shook the United States out of its isolationism. The United States began a military draft and started building new military equipment. It also began arming merchant ships to carry goods through the hostile North Atlantic to England (a practice it had abandoned with the policy of Cash and Carry in 1937); traded World War I-era naval destroyers to England in exchange for naval bases, and began the Lend-Lease program. Through Lend-Lease the United States became what President Franklin D. Roosevelt called the arsenal of democracy, making and supplying materiel of war to Great Britain and others fighting Axis powers. During World War II, Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill held several personal conferences. They met first off the coast of Newfoundland aboard a navy destroyer in August 1941. There they issued the Atlantic Charter, an agreement in which they outlined the goals of the war. Of course, the U.S. was not officially in the war, but tacitly FDR pledged to do all he could for England short of formal war. When the U.S. officially joined the war after Japan attacked its Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Churchill went to Washington where he spent the holiday season. He talked strategy with FDR in the Arcadia Conference, and he addressed a joint session of the U.S. Congress- a rare event for a foreign diplomat. During the war, FDR and Churchill met at the Casablanca Conference in North Africa in early 1943 where they announced the Allied policy of unconditional surrender of Axis forces. In 1944 they met at Tehran, Iran, with Josef Stalin, leader of the Soviet Union. There they discussed war strategy and the opening of a second military front in France. In January 1945, with the war winding down, they met at Yalta on the Black Sea where, again with Stalin, they talked about post-war policies and the creation of the United Nations. During the war, the U.S. and Great Britain cooperated in the invasions of North Africa, Sicily, Italy, France and Germany, and several islands and naval campaigns in the Pacific. At the wars end, as per an agreement at Yalta, the United States and Britain split the occupation of Germany with France and the Soviet Union. Throughout the war, Great Britain acknowledged that the United States had surpassed it as the worlds top power by accepting a command hierarchy that put Americans in supreme command positions in all major theaters of the war.

Management strategy and policy research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Management strategy and policy - Research Paper Example The net revenue of the company in the financial year 2011 was $701.29 million, which reflects a reflecting a strong financial situation of the company. Aramex is a publicly traded joint stock company registered under United Arab Emirates laws and its shares are traded in Dubai financial market. The company is currently headquartered at Amman, Jordan and has its business wings spread all over the world. The organizational structure of the company is well defined and is managed along two tracks - 1) by service 2) geographically, with the help of, country managers, regional senior managers and cross?functional country?based‘Aramexteams’ that is providing harmonization of all Aramex services on a modified basis to Aramex customers (â€Å"About Aramex†). The organizational structure of the company is presented below: - Organizational structure of Aramex and how it impacts the design and implementation of Strategy Figure 1 – Corporate management Structure of Aram ex (Source: Aramex, â€Å"Sustainability Report 2006† 8) The above chart clearly points out about the departments or divisions of the organization. In addition, the chart also sheds light on the way Aramex is carrying out and managing its business functions. Presently the company has 4 major departments namely marketing, IT (information technology), finance and the operations departments. Each of the departments is being headed by the VP’s (Vice Presidents). From the organizational chart it has also observed that the company has appointed VP’s in different location. Most of them are responsible for managing the operation of the allotted areas. The structure followed by the company is therefore clearly divisional structure. However, these VP’s do not report to any of the departmental heads, rather they directly reports to the CEO of the company. Apart from them, other business heads such as the chief technology officer, chief marketing officer, group finan cial controller, Sr. VP finance and CFO, VP logistics and ground operation, Sr. VP cargo, VP express, chief strategy office, vice president, as well as the in front managing director. Hence, it is obvious that the company has been able to streamline its business process with this organizational arrangement. On the contrary, if the arrangement wouldn’t have been appropriate the performance of the company was sure to be negatively impacted. However, the financial results of the company clearly points out that the company is doing well in the market place. The flat and decentralized management structure of the organization is one of the key drivers of success for the company. The simple and flexible structure of the organization has allowed them to empower the employees of the organization and also make decision pertaining to the enhancement of the company’s service offerings irrespective of the location of the organization and the level at which they are operating (Arame x, â€Å"the age of entrepreneur† 4). Nevertheless, a number of studies reveal that the organizational structure has a strong impact on the design, formulation and implementation of the organizational strategies. Organizational strategy and structure are highly related as the organizational strategy of a company helps them to describe, identify and build the organizational structure. This is the reason why the organizational structure of a company is based on the outcome of the analysis of the

The Rationality of the American Voter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Rationality of the American Voter - Essay Example Can charisma alone be enough to win an election when faced with a public that is generally ignorant of the political process and the important issues at stake By improving the education of the voter, we can elevate the level of leadership in politics. In the absence of information, a candidate's charm, likeability, and charisma all contribute to an image that the voter seizes upon to make their electoral decision. A candidate's ability to project an image of almost super-human proportions resonates well with a public that is caught in times of crisis. Wars, a bad economy, depreciating social structures, and cultural turmoil all play into the hand of the charismatic leader as voters look for relief from their hardships and despair (Bass & Riggio, 2006, p.64). During these periods of political upheaval, voters are less interested in the issues and more interested in salvation from the looming dire situation. Candidates will take this opportunity to exploit the current situation or negatively characterize the opponent's alternatives. The 1992 election saw a charismatic Bill Clinton defeat the incumbent George Bush. Bush was characterized as a 'wimp' and Clinton was able to capitalize on his charming appeal with the slogan 'it's the economy stupid'. Had there been a booming economy, the American voter would have been more reluctant to change and would have been more likely to stay with the stabil ity of the sitting president (Alvarez & Nagler, 1998, p.1362). In addition, Clinton was able to portray the economy in bleaker terms than the voter understood. The slight economic downturn of 1992 was enough to create an opportunity for a charismatic candidate. The education of the voter, as portrayed by the candidate, was less important than the situation that they were caught up in. When voters are ignorant on the issues, under-informed, and generally politically naive about the electoral process, charisma can be an overriding factor. Media outlets that have a political agenda that they promote often influence voters, but offer limited information. Talk shows, pundits, radio talk show hosts, and pop culture all contribute to an air of confusion and irrationality for the average citizen. It is more likely the case that a voter loyal to a party will may make a decision based on who informed them rather than if they were informed. Therefore, the effect of charisma on the voter will be most heavily felt among the independents that will ultimately decide the election. According to Silva and Costa (2006), "rational ignorance is not to explain the behavior of the entire population of voters, but rather only that of swing voters" (p.39). Widely known figures will emphasize their accomplishments and record, but a relatively unknown challenger may have to rely on image an d charisma (Miller, 1990, p.530). Silva and Costa conclude that, "factors like the candidate's image and charisma may dominate a rigorous evaluation of his performance" (p.40). Often, uneducated voters cannot delineate between the truth and the fiction in political campaign ads. In today's climate of ideologues, characterizations, and partisanship, charisma can be a deciding factor in a close election. To rely on charisma alone to carry a candidate to victory is dependent upon a voting public, particularly the independent middle, which is

Establishing a Planned Giving Program Essay Example for Free

Establishing a Planned Giving Program Essay Charitable institutions play an important role in society, now more than ever, as socio-economic issues mount. The essence of charitable institutions is to facilitate the sharing or transfer of resources from those with excess to those who are wanting. The culture of giving emerged as a means of ensuring overall social welfare by pulling excess resources to segments of the population having more than they need to people without resources. Charitable institutions develop fund raising activities and schemes to encourage philanthropy as well as manage funds to translate this into programs for the targeted beneficiaries to fulfill this role effectively and continuously. The philosophy of fund raising for charitable work is that philanthropy plays an important role in democratic societies and fund raising is inevitable to philanthropy so that fund raising becomes an absolute necessity to democratic societies. (Kelly, 1998) Over the years, charitable institutions developed many fund raising processes or systems to ensure the short and long-term flow of funds necessary to support their important function. Planned giving is one long-term fund raising program that emerged. This works by providing donors with the option, other than outright giving, to defer giving to charitable institutions years after expressing the giving behavior, usually upon the death of the donor. This then focuses on assets instead of income as the measure of the capacity of donors to give. (Kelly, 1998) The rationale for this option is to facilitate the passing of assets from one generation to another through a system that allocates assets from their estates to charitable institutions upon their death according to their preference (Harrington, 2004). If people elect to pass their assets to charitable institutions then they can do so through planned giving. This also finds support in the governance system by providing incentives to philanthropy in the form of tax exemptions. II. Review of Literature A. Important Concepts and Definitions in Planned Giving Kelly (1998) conceptualized planned giving as the managed effort by charitable institutions to raise funds from gifts of assets of donors utilizing estate and financial planning processes and tools. The purpose of planned giving is to generate major gifts by offering donors with another option aside from outright giving. This fund raising scheme expands the prospect pool of donors by centering on assets, instead of income, as the determinant of the capacity to give. The sole concern of planned giving is facilitating the philanthropy of individual donors as compared to the other fund-raising efforts directed at the public. Previously, this fund raising method was known as deferred giving because financial benefits for the recipient charitable institution usually are postponed until years after the donor has set-up the gift, usually upon death resulting to the appropriation or management of the estate. The description explained planned giving in terms of the implications to charitable institutions and donors of the benefits from financial planning and incentives for planning giving. Weinstein (2002) defined planned giving, also known as charitable gift planning, as the giving of charitable contributions with some level of professional guidance. Most planned gifts have the effect of reducing the estate taxes, income taxes, and/or capital gains taxes of the donor. Charitable gift planning supports the charitable intentions of the donor while at the same time helps donors better manage their assets for their families and loved ones. Usually, planned gifts are bequests, which mean deferred actual receipt by charitable institutions. Non-profit organizations receive the bequest after the death of the donor. There are also other planned gifts, such as donations of appreciated stock, which accrue current contributions for the charitable institution. This definition focuses on planned giving as a process or system and the manner this works in supporting the fund raising activities of charitable institutions and asset management of donors. Hopkins (2005) explained that planned giving ideally concerns â€Å"long-term capital gain property† (p. 245) that is likely to increase in value. The greater the increase in value, the greater would be the charitable deduction as well as the income from tax savings. Value appreciation comprises a core concept in planned giving so that a planned gift is essentially interest in money or an item of property of the donor. Planning giving involves the transference of partial interest in property based on the concept of property as having two interests, which are income and remainder interest. The income interest from an item of property depends on the income generated by the property at the current time while the remainder interest from an item of property pertains to the projected value of the property, or the property produced by reinvestments, at some future date. As such, the remainder interest is the amount equal to the present value of the property when received at a subsequent point in time, which is higher than the income interest assuming that the property is appreciating. Measuring these two types of interest in property is through the consideration of property value, donor’s age, and the period when the income interest will exist. An income interest or a remainder interest in property could be subject to charitable donation. However, a deduction is almost never available for a charitable gift of an income interest in property. By contrast, the charitable contribution of a remainder interest in an item of property will likely give rise to a charitable deduction with compliance of all technical requirements. This provides an explanation of the manner that the system works and serves as an elaboration of the previous definitions. The explanation also provided a rationale for planned giving since remainder interest, which accrues in the future is usually always subject to charitable deductions when compared to income interest accruing at present. Hopkins (2005) further explained the two basic types of planned gifts. One is legacy or charitable giving contained under a will. This is a gift coming out of the estate of a deceased as a bequest or devise. Planned giving in the form of a legacy works through the inclusion of a charitable institution as a beneficiary of the estate of the donor with entitlement following the death of the donor. As such, this perpetuates the philanthropy of individual even in death. The amount assigned to the charitable institution comprises a tax exemption that decreases the estate tax. The other is a gift made during a donor’s lifetime, using a trust or other agreement. An example is charitable gift annuity that commences when a donor gives a charitable institution a certain amount of money that the institution can use, similar to a premium paid for insurance, but with the condition that a beneficiary receive payment of a certain amount every year. The amount given by the donor is subject to tax exemption. After the payment of annuity ceases such as with the death of the beneficiary, the charitable institutions gains the amount paid and all other interest accruing from its appropriation. This explains the options available to donors, with options supporting the charitable intentions of donors and providing them with convenient options for financial planning. B. Basic Steps in Establishing Planned Giving Program for a Non-Profit Organization Establishing planned giving program for a non-profit organization should involve some basic preparatory steps similar to a business plan in profit organizations. The first step is preparation. This involves an assessment of the capability of the organization to manage a planned giving program to determine areas requiring improvements to accommodate the program. Another must do is obtaining the feedback from the board over the development of the planned giving program since the board’s support determines a successful program. This step also involves a feasibility study to determine whether the intended program meets two criteria. One is whether the leaders and members of the organization together with donors believe in continuing its existence in the long-term and the other is whether donors express their belief in the longevity of the organization through significant gifts. (Barett Ware, 2002) In satisfying these criteria there is a higher probability of success. Second step is planning. This step covers the identification of goals and specific objectives of the program, the changes in organizational structure including the creation of committees and sub-committees and assignment of leadership positions and tasks, the plan for staffing such as part time or full time, the budget to cover all aspects of the program, and the timetable for the phases of the planned giving program. (Dove, Spears Herbert, 2002) These areas should receive focus to cover all planned program to support viability. The third step involves the identification of the program’s core and specific features. The idea of planned giving is to provide givers with various options on the ways through which they prefer to actualize their charitable intentions and manage their assets in the process. This means the need to identify the particular planned giving options that the non-profit organization would make available to its donors together with the details of how these works. (Ashton, 2004) This is for the benefit of the staff who would be directly dealing with donors and for the benefit of donors wanting to learn more about giving options offered by its preferred charitable institution. The fourth step is policymaking. Guidelines and protocols are inevitable in actualizing the planned giving program. Policies should cover issues such as legal advice, confidentiality of information, conflict in interest and authority in negotiations. Guidelines should also thoroughly explain procedures in executing and accepting planned gifts, valuation of donations, according of credit for planned gifts, investing managing and administering of planned gifts, and limitations and terms of planned gifts. Lastly, the policies should also establish the functions and roles of the committees and administrators. (Barett Ware, 2002) The fifth step is promoting the planned giving program to individual potential donors as well as the community in general. There are a number of ways for non-profit organizations to promote their planned giving programs including the handouts or leaflets, newsletters and other widely distributed publications, hosted events, seminars, and personal testimonials or referrals. The important thing is to introduce the program to people as a means of developing interest in planned giving and reaching out to existing donors who could be interested in different options. (Reiss, 2000) The sixth step is prospecting. This involves a two-fold consideration. On one hand, this involves the determination of the likely uptake of the program by considering potential donors including the involvement in planned giving by members of the board themselves. This results to identification of anticipated long-term fund raising position of the organization. On the other hand, this also involves the determination of the impact of the program including the possible issues and problems to support contingency planning. (Rosso, 2003) C. Establishing Goals and Objectives for Planned Giving Program Goals comprise statements of the position or outcome that the organization wants to gain while objectives set out the manner of achieving this position or outcome (Lewis, 2006). Establishing the goals and objectives of the planned giving program also goes through a series of interconnected cyclical processes. The first process is communication and clarification of issues, problems, challenges or opportunities that provide a context for establishing the program. These support the determination of goals. If a challenge is giving options then the goal would be diversified giving options for donors and the objective is the development of a planned giving program. (Lauer, 1997) The second process is evaluation of alternative solutions to express needs and requirements into goals and objectives through measures of success that would also constitute the criteria for evaluating the extent of fulfillment of the goals and objectives. (Lauer, 1997) The third process is articulation by drawing the participation of all stakeholders in providing perspectives over the areas for improvement and drawing consensus on actions (Lauer, 1997).

Powers of a Monopolistic Anarchy Essay example -- Essays Papers

Powers of a Monopolistic Anarchy While the Microsoft Empire maintains its status as a vast company of large-scale production, readily contributing to the national GDP, and yielding high interest and profits to its associates, criticism and controversial accusations keep mounting. The thought of a monopoly as the economic device for good business seems almost mind-boggling to Microsoft’s competing corporations, as well as the entire economic community, legal and commercial. Why is monopoly such an undesirable practice? Why does the Microsoft Monopoly, in particular, violate the antitrust laws, and how far ought the government go in its efforts to regulate and fight such monopoly. What are the economic crimes that Microsoft is guilty of? Is it, in fact, true when the critics argue that, â€Å"Microsoft gained its dominance over 20 years... [which ended] with a virtual barrier to entry for rival operating system software marketsâ€Å" (The Making of a Monopoly). Is it true that Microsoft has eliminated all of its concurrent competition, and stabilized its power to the extent of a complete monopoly. Or is there perhaps a validation for Microsoft’s practices in the saying that everything is fair in business. Two Theories of Monopoly Before mentioning the strength of Microsoft’s influence on domestic, as well as the foreign economy, it is crucial to examine the significance of a monopoly, and how it relates to a country’s fiscal structure. According to Webster’s dictionary, a monopoly is â€Å"the exclusive ownership and control of a commodity or service in a given market† (Webster’s Dictionary 337). Predictably, thought, there are degrees of control, and thus degrees of monopoly. The economic theory separates the idea of a mono... ...ectly affecting the consumers. Perhaps the best solution to Microsoft’s authority would include structural remedies, such as the divestiture remedy, which may be less subject to gaming, but pose the risk of substantial costs. However, other sources suggest that the most effective remedy may be that the government’s victory eases the way for plaintiffs in private antitrust suits to collect monetary damages, which could be sufficient to deter future anticompetitive conduct (Journal of Economic Perspectives). Whatever the approach to resolving this issue may be, it is certain that the Microsoft monopoly can no longer enjoy its precedent benefits. Nonetheless, there remains a grand possibility that Microsoft will be able to maintain its power to at least some extent, due to the fact that their products are needed, and their competition remains inadequate.

The Twilight Saga 3: Eclipse Chapter 3. MOTIVES

THE SUN WAS SO DEEPLY BURIED BEHIND THE CLOUDS that there was no way to tell if it had set or not. After the long flight – chasing the sun westward so that it seemed unmoving in the sky – it was especially disorienting; time seemed oddly variable. It took me by surprise when the forest gave way to the first buildings, signaling that we were nearly home. â€Å"You've been very quiet,† Edward observed. â€Å"Did the plane make you sick?† â€Å"No, I'm okay.† â€Å"Are you sad to leave?† â€Å"More relieved than sad, I think.† He raised one eyebrow at me. I knew it was useless and – much as I hated to admit it – unnecessary to ask him to keep his eyes on the road. â€Å"Rene is so much more . . . perceptive than Charlie in some ways. It was making me jumpy.† Edward laughed. â€Å"Your mother has a very interesting mind. Almost childlike, but very insightful. She sees things differently than other people.† Insightful. It was a good description of my mother – when she was paying attention. Most of the time Rene was so bewildered by her own life that she didn't notice much else. But this weekend she'd been paying plenty of attention to me. Phil was busy – the high school baseball team he coached was in the playoffs – and being alone with Edward and me had only sharpened Rene's focus. As soon as the hugs and squeals of delight were out of the way, Rene began to watch. And as she'd watched, her wide blue eyes had become first confused and then concerned. This morning we'd gone for a walk along the beach. She wanted to show off all the beauties of her new home, still hoping, I think, that the sun might lure me away from Forks. She'd also wanted to talk with me alone, and that was easily arranged. Edward had fabricated a term paper to give himself an excuse to stay indoors during the day. In my head, I went through the conversation again. . . . Rene and I ambled along the sidewalk, trying to stay in the range of the infrequent palm tree shadows. Though it was early, the heat was smothering. The air was so heavy with moisture that just breathing in and out was giving my lungs a workout. â€Å"Bella?† my mother asked, looking out past the sand to the lightly crashing waves as she spoke. â€Å"What is it, Mom?† She sighed, not meeting my gaze. â€Å"I'm worried. . . .† â€Å"What's wrong?† I asked, anxious at once. â€Å"What can I do?† â€Å"It's not me.† She shook her head. â€Å"I'm worried about you . . . and Edward.† Rene finally looked at me when she said his name, her face apologetic. â€Å"Oh,† I mumbled, fixing my eyes on a pair of joggers as they passed us, drenched with sweat. â€Å"You two are more serious than I'd been thinking,† she went on. I frowned, quickly reviewing the last two days in my head. Edward and I had barely touched – in front of her, at least. I wondered if Rene was about to give me a lecture on responsibility, too. I didn't mind that the way I had with Charlie. It wasn't embarrassing with my mom. After all, I'd been the one giving her that lecture time and time again in the last ten years. â€Å"There's something . . . strange about the way you two are together,† she murmured, her forehead creasing over her troubled eyes. â€Å"The way he watches you – it's so . . . protective. Like he's about to throw himself in front of a bullet to save you or something.† I laughed, though I was still not able to meet her gaze. â€Å"That's a bad thing?† â€Å"No.† She frowned as she struggled for the words. â€Å"It's just different. He's very intense about you . . . and very careful. I feel like I don't really understand your relationship. Like there's some secret I'm missing. . . .† â€Å"I think you're imagining things, Mom,† I said quickly, struggling to keep my voice light. There was a flutter in my stomach. I'd forgotten how much my mother saw. Something about her simple view of the world cut through all the distractions and pierced right to the truth of things. This had never been a problem before. Until now, there had never been a secret I couldn't tell her. â€Å"It's not just him.† She set her lips defensively. â€Å"I wish you could see how you move around him.† â€Å"What do you mean?† â€Å"The way you move – you orient yourself around him without even thinking about it. When he moves, even a little bit, you adjust your position at the same time. Like magnets . . . or gravity. You're like a . . . satellite, or something. I've never seen anything like it.† She pursed her lips and stared down. â€Å"Don't tell me,† I teased, forcing a smile. â€Å"You're reading mysteries again, aren't you? Or is it sci-fi this time?† Rene flushed a delicate pink. â€Å"That's beside the point.† â€Å"Found anything good?† â€Å"Well, there was one – but that doesn't matter. We're talking about you right now.† â€Å"You should stick to romance, Mom. You know how you freak yourself out.† Her lips turned up at the corners. â€Å"I'm being silly, aren't I?† For half a second I couldn't answer. Rene was so easily swayed. Sometimes it was a good thing, because not all of her ideas were practical. But it pained me to see how quickly she caved in to my trivializing, especially since she was dead right this time. She looked up, and I controlled my expression. â€Å"Not silly – just being a mom.† She laughed and then gestured grandly toward the white sands stretching to the blue water. â€Å"And all this isn't enough to get you to move back in with your silly mom?† I wiped my hand dramatically across my forehead, and then pretended to wring my hair out. â€Å"You get used to the humidity,† she promised. â€Å"You can get used to rain, too,† I countered. She elbowed me playfully and then took my hand as we walked back to her car. Other than her worries about me, she seemed happy enough. Content. She still looked at Phil with goo- goo eyes, and that was comforting. Surely her life was full and satisfying. Surely she didn't miss me that much, even now. . . . Edward's icy fingers brushed my cheek. I looked up, blinking, coming back to the present. He leaned down and kissed my forehead. â€Å"We're home, Sleeping Beauty. Time to awake.† We were stopped in front of Charlie's house. The porch light was on and the cruiser was parked in the driveway. As I examined the house, I saw the curtain twitch in the living room window, flashing a line of yellow light across the dark lawn. I sighed. Of course Charlie was waiting to pounce. Edward must have been thinking the same thing, because his expression was stiff and his eyes remote as he came to get my door for me. â€Å"How bad?† I asked. â€Å"Charlie's not going to be difficult,† Edward promised, his voice level with no hint of humor. â€Å"He missed you.† My eyes narrowed in doubt. If that was the case, then why was Edward tensed as if for a battle? My bag was small, but he insisted on carrying it into the house. Charlie held the door open for us. â€Å"Welcome home, kid!† Charlie shouted like he really meant it. â€Å"How was Jacksonville?† â€Å"Moist. And buggy.† â€Å"So Rene didn't sell you on the University of Florida?† â€Å"She tried. But I'd rather drink water than inhale it.† Charlie's eyes flickered unwillingly to Edward. â€Å"Did you have a nice time?† â€Å"Yes,† Edward answered in a serene voice. â€Å"Rene was very hospitable.† â€Å"That's . . . um, good. Glad you had fun.† Charlie turned away from Edward and pulled me in for an unexpected hug. â€Å"Impressive,† I whispered in his ear. He rumbled a laugh. â€Å"I really missed you, Bells. The food around here sucks when you're gone.† â€Å"I'll get on it,† I said as he let me go. â€Å"Would you call Jacob first? He's been bugging me every five minutes since six o'clock this morning. I promised I'd have you call him before you even unpacked.† I didn't have to look at Edward to feel that he was too still, too cold beside me. So this was the cause of his tension. â€Å"Jacob wants to talk to me?† â€Å"Pretty bad, I'd say. He wouldn't tell me what it was about – just said it was important.† The phone rang then, shrill and demanding. â€Å"That's him again, I'd bet my next paycheck,† Charlie muttered. â€Å"I got it.† I hurried to the kitchen. Edward followed after me while Charlie disappeared into the living room. I grabbed the phone mid-ring, and twisted around so that I was facing the wall. â€Å"Hello?† â€Å"You're back,† Jacob said. His familiar husky voice sent a wave of wistfulness through me. A thousand memories spun in my head, tangling together – a rocky beach strewn with driftwood trees, a garage made of plastic sheds, warm sodas in a paper bag, a tiny room with one too-small shabby loveseat. The laughter in his deep-set black eyes, the feverish heat of his big hand around mine, the flash of his white teeth against his dark skin, his face stretching into the wide smile that had always been like a key to a secret door where only kindred spirits could enter. It felt sort of like homesickness, this longing for the place and person who had sheltered me through my darkest night. I cleared the lump from my throat. â€Å"Yes,† I answered. â€Å"Why didn't you call me?† Jacob demanded. His angry tone instantly got my back up. â€Å"Because I've been in the house for exactly four seconds and your call interrupted Charlie telling me that you'd called.† â€Å"Oh. Sorry.† â€Å"Sure. Now, why are you harassing Charlie?† â€Å"I need to talk to you.† â€Å"Yeah, I figured out that part all by myself. Go ahead.† There was a short pause. â€Å"You going to school tomorrow?† I frowned to myself, unable to make sense of this question. â€Å"Of course I am. Why wouldn't I?† â€Å"I dunno. Just curious.† Another pause. â€Å"So what did you want to talk about, Jake?† He hesitated. â€Å"Nothing really, I guess. I . . . wanted to hear your voice.† â€Å"Yeah, I know. I'm so glad you called me, Jake. I . . .† But I didn't know what more to say. I wanted to tell him I was on my way to La Push right now. And I couldn't tell him that. â€Å"I have to go,† he said abruptly. â€Å"What?† â€Å"I'll talk to you soon, okay?† â€Å"But Jake -â€Å" He was already gone. I listened to the dial tone with disbelief. â€Å"That was short,† I muttered. â€Å"Is everything all right?† Edward asked. His voice was low and careful. I turned slowly to face him. His expression was perfectly smooth – impossible to read. â€Å"I don't know. I wonder what that was about.† It didn't make sense that Jacob had been hounding Charlie all day just to ask me if I was going to school. And if he'd wanted to hear my voice, then why did he hang up so quickly? â€Å"Your guess is probably better than mine,† Edward said, the hint of a smiletugging at the corner of his mouth. â€Å"Mmm,† I murmured. That was true. I knew Jake inside and out. It shouldn't be that complicated to figure out his motivations. With my thoughts miles away – about fifteen miles away, up the road to La Push – I started combing through the fridge, assembling ingredients for Charlie's dinner. Edward leaned against the counter, and I was distantly aware that his eyes were on my face, but too preoccupied to worry about what he saw there. The school thing seemed like the key to me. That was the only real question Jake had asked. And he had to be after an answer to something, or he wouldn't have been bugging Charlie so persistently. Why would my attendance record matter to him, though? I tried to think about it in a logical way. So, if I hadn't been going to school tomorrow, what would be the problem with that, from Jacob's perspective? Charlie had given me a little grief about missing a day of school so close to finals, but I'd convinced him that one Friday wasn't going to derail my studies. Jake would hardly care about that. My brain refused to come up with any brilliant insights. Maybe I was missing some vital piece of information. What could have changed in the past three days that was so important that Jacob would break his long streak of refusing to answer my phone calls and contact me? What difference could three days make? I froze in the middle of the kitchen. The package of icy hamburger in my hands slipped through my numb fingers. It took me a slow second to miss the thud it should have made against the floor. Edward had caught it and thrown it onto the counter. His arms were already around me, his lips at my ear. â€Å"What's wrong?† I shook my head, dazed. Three days could change everything. Hadn't I just been thinking about how impossible college was? How I couldn't be anywhere near people after I'd gone through the painful three-day conversion that would set me free from mortality, so that I could spend eternity with Edward? The conversion that would make me forever a prisoner to my own thirst. . . . Had Charlie told Billy that I'd vanished for three days? Had Billy jumped to conclusions? Had Jacob really been asking me if I was still human? Making sure that the werewolves' treaty was unbroken – that none of the Cullens had dared to bite a human . . . bite, not kill . . . ? But did he honestly think I would come home to Charlie if that was the case? Edward shook me. â€Å"Bella?† he asked, truly anxious now. â€Å"I think . . . I think he was checking,† I mumbled. â€Å"Checking to make sure. That I'm human, I mean.† Edward stiffened, and a low hiss sounded in my ear. â€Å"We'll have to leave,† I whispered. â€Å"Before. So that it doesn't break the treaty. We won't ever be able to come back.† His arms tightened around me. â€Å"I know.† â€Å"Ahem.† Charlie cleared his voice loudly behind us. I jumped, and then pulled free of Edward's arms, my face getting hot. Edward leaned back against the counter. His eyes were tight. I could see worry in them, and anger. â€Å"If you don't want to make dinner, I can call for a pizza,† Charlie hinted. â€Å"No, that's okay, I'm already started.† â€Å"Okay,† Charlie said. He propped himself against the doorframe, folding his arms. I sighed and got to work, trying to ignore my audience. â€Å"If I asked you to do something, would you trust me?† Edward asked, an edge to his soft voice. We were almost to school. Edward had been relaxed and joking just a moment ago, and now suddenly his hands were clenched tight on the steering wheel, his knuckles straining in an effort not to snap it into pieces. I stared at his anxious expression – his eyes were far away, like he was listening to distant voices. My pulse sped in response to his stress, but I answered carefully. â€Å"That depends.† We pulled into the school lot. â€Å"I was afraid you would say that.† â€Å"What do you want me to do, Edward?† â€Å"I want you to stay in the car.† He pulled into his usual spot and turned the engine off as he spoke. â€Å"I want you to wait here until I come back for you.† â€Å"But . . . why?† That was when I saw him. He would have been hard to miss, towering over the students the way he did, even if he hadn't been leaning against his black motorcycle, parked illegally on the sidewalk. â€Å"Oh.† Jacob's face was a calm mask that I recognized well. It was the face he used when he was determined to keep his emotions in check, to keep himself under control. It made him look like Sam, the oldest of the wolves, the leader of the Quileute pack. But Jacob could never quite manage the perfect serenity Sam always exuded. I'd forgotten how much this face bothered me. Though I'd gotten to know Sam pretty well before the Cullens had come back – to like him, even – I'd never been able to completely shake the resentment I felt when Jacob mimicked Sam's expression. It was a stranger's face. He wasn't my Jacob when he wore it. â€Å"You jumped to the wrong conclusion last night,† Edward murmured. â€Å"He asked about school because he knew that I would be where you were. He was looking for a safe place to talk to me. A place with witnesses.† So I'd misinterpreted Jacob's motives last night. Missing information, that was the problem. Information like why in the world Jacob would want to talk to Edward. â€Å"I'm not staying in the car,† I said. Edward groaned quietly. â€Å"Of course not. Well, let's get this over with.† Jacob's face hardened as we walked toward him, hand in hand. I noticed other faces, too – the faces of my classmates. I noticed how their eyes widened as they took in all six foot seven inches of Jacob's long body, muscled up the way no normal sixteen-and-a-half-year-old ever had been. I saw those eyes rake over his tight black t-shirt – short-sleeved, though the day was unseasonably cool – his ragged, grease-smeared jeans, and the glossy black bike he leaned against. Their eyes didn't linger on his face – something about his expression had them glancing quickly away. And I noticed the wide berth everyone gave him, the bubble of space that no one dared to encroach on. With a sense of astonishment, I realized that Jacob looked dangerous to them. How odd. Edward stopped a few yards away from Jacob, and I could tell that he was uncomfortable having me so close to a werewolf. He drew his hand back slightly, pulling me halfway behind his body. â€Å"You could have called us,† Edward said in a steel-hard voice. â€Å"Sorry,† Jacob answered, his face twisting into a sneer. â€Å"I don't have any leeches on my speed dial.† â€Å"You could have reached me at Bella's house, of course.† Jacob's jaw flexed, and his brows pulled together. He didn't answer. â€Å"This is hardly the place, Jacob. Could we discuss this later?† â€Å"Sure, sure. I'll stop by your crypt after school.† Jacob snorted. â€Å"What's wrong with now?† Edward looked around pointedly, his eyes resting on the witnesses who were just barely out of hearing range. A few people were hesitating on the sidewalk, their eyes bright with expectation. Like they were hoping a fight might break out to alleviate the tedium of another Monday morning. I saw Tyler Crowley nudge Austin Marks, and they both paused on their way to class. â€Å"I already know what you came to say,† Edward reminded Jacob in voice so low that I could barely make it out. â€Å"Message delivered. Consider us warned.† Edward glanced down at me for a fleeting second with worried eyes. â€Å"Warned?† I asked blankly. â€Å"What are you talking about?† â€Å"You didn't tell her?† Jacob asked, his eyes widening with disbelief. â€Å"What, were you afraid she'd take our side?† â€Å"Please drop it, Jacob,† Edward said in an even voice. â€Å"Why?† Jacob challenged. I frowned in confusion. â€Å"What don't I know? Edward?† Edward just glared at Jacob as if he hadn't heard me. â€Å"Jake?† Jacob raised his eyebrow at me. â€Å"He didn't tell you that his big . . . brother crossed the line Saturday night?† he asked, his tone thickly layered with sarcasm. Then his eyes flickered back to Edward. â€Å"Paul was totally justified in -â€Å" â€Å"It was no-man's land!† Edward hissed. â€Å"Was not!† Jacob was fuming visibly. His hands trembled. He shook his head and sucked in two deep lungfuls of air. â€Å"Emmett and Paul?† I whispered. Paul was Jacob's most volatile pack brother. He was the one who'd lost control that day in the woods – the memory of the snarling gray wolf was suddenly vividin my head. â€Å"What happened? Were they fighting?† My voice strained higher in panic. â€Å"Why? Did Paul get hurt?† â€Å"No one fought,† Edward said quietly, only to me. â€Å"No one got hurt. Don't be anxious.† Jacob was staring at us with incredulous eyes. â€Å"You didn't tell her anything at all, did you? Is that why you took her away? So she wouldn't know that -?† â€Å"Leave now.† Edward cut him off mid-sentence, and his face was abruptly frightening – truly frightening. For a second, he looked like . . . like a vampire. He glared at Jacob with vicious, unveiled loathing. Jacob raised his eyebrows, but made no other move. â€Å"Why haven't you told her?† They faced each other in silence for a long moment. More students gathered behind Tyler and Austin. I saw Mike next to Ben – Mike had one hand on Ben's shoulder, like he was holding him in place. In the dead silence, all the details suddenly fell into place for me with a burst of intuition. Something Edward didn't want me to know. Something that Jacob wouldn't have kept from me. Something that had the Cullens and the wolves both in the woods, moving in hazardous proximity to each other. Something that would cause Edward to insist that I fly across the country. Something that Alice had seen in a vision last week – a vision Edward had lied to me about. Something I'd been waiting for anyway. Something I knew would happen again, as much as I might wish it never would. It was never going to end, was it? I heard the quick gasp, gasp, gasp, gasp of the air dragging through my lips, but I couldn't stop it. It looked like the school was shaking, like there was an earthquake, but I knew it was my own trembling that caused the illusion. â€Å"She came back for me,† I choked out. Victoria was never going to give up till I was dead. She would keep repeating the same pattern – feint and run, feint and run – until she found a hole through my defenders. Maybe I'd get lucky. Maybe the Volturi would come for me first – they'd kill me quicker, at least. Edward held me tight to his side, angling his body so that he was still between me and Jacob, and stroked my face with anxious hands. â€Å"It's fine,† he whispered to me. â€Å"It's fine. I'll never let her get close to you, it's fine.† Then he glared at Jacob. â€Å"Does that answer your question, mongrel?† â€Å"You don't think Bella has a right to know?† Jacob challenged. â€Å"It's her life.† Edward kept his voice muted; even Tyler, edging forward by inches, would be unable to hear. â€Å"Why should she be frightened when she was never in danger?† â€Å"Better frightened than lied to.† I tried to pull myself together, but my eyes were swimming in moisture. I could see it behind my lids – I could see Victoria's face, her lips pulled back over her teeth, her crimson eyes glowing with the obsession of her vendetta; she held Edward responsible for the demise of her love, James. She wouldn't stop until his love was taken from him, too. Edward wiped the tears from my cheek with his fingertips. â€Å"Do you really think hurting her is better than protecting her?† he murmured. â€Å"She's tougher than you think,† Jacob said. â€Å"And she's been through worse.† Abruptly, Jacob's expression shifted, and he was staring at Edward with an odd, speculative expression. His eyes narrowed like he was trying to do a difficult math problem in his head. I felt Edward cringe. I glanced up at him, and his face was contorted in what could only be pain. For one ghastly moment, I was reminded of our afternoon in Italy, in the macabre tower room of the Volturi, where Jane had tortured Edward with her malignant gift, burning him with her thoughts alone. . . . The memory snapped me out of my near hysteria and put everything in perspective. Because I'd rather Victoria killed me a hundred times over than watch Edward suffer that way again. â€Å"That's funny,† Jacob said, laughing as he watched Edward's face. Edward winced, but smoothed his expression with a little effort. He couldn't quite hide the agony in his eyes. I glanced, wide-eyed, from Edward's grimace to Jacob's sneer. â€Å"What are you doing to him?† I demanded. â€Å"It's nothing, Bella,† Edward told me quietly. â€Å"Jacob just has a good memory, that's all.† Jacob grinned, and Edward winced again. â€Å"Stop it! Whatever you're doing.† â€Å"Sure, if you want.† Jacob shrugged. â€Å"It's his own fault if he doesn't like the things I remember, though.† I glared at him, and he smiled back impishly – like a kid caught doing something he knows he shouldn't by someone who he knows won't punish him. â€Å"The principal's on his way to discourage loitering on school property,† Edward murmured to me. â€Å"Let's get to English, Bella, so you're not involved.† â€Å"Overprotective, isn't he?† Jacob said, talking just to me. â€Å"A little trouble makes life fun. Let me guess, you're not allowed to have fun, are you?† Edward glowered, and his lips pulled back from his teeth ever so slightly. â€Å"Shut up, Jake,† I said. Jacob laughed. â€Å"That sounds like a no. Hey, if you ever feel like having a life again, you could come see me. I've still got your motorcycle in my garage.† This news distracted me. â€Å"You were supposed to sell that. You promised Charlie you would.† If I hadn't begged on Jake's behalf – after all, he'd put weeks of labor into both motorcycles, and he deserved some kind of payback – Charlie would have thrown my bike in a Dumpster. And possibly set that Dumpster on fire. â€Å"Yeah, right. Like I would do that. It belongs to you, not me. Anyway, I'll hold on to it until you want it back.† A tiny hint of the smile I remembered was suddenly playing around the edges of his lips. â€Å"Jake . . .† He leaned forward, his face earnest now, the bitter sarcasm fading. â€Å"I think I might have been wrong before, you know, about not being able to be friends. Maybe we could manage it, on my side of the line. Come see me.† I was vividly conscious of Edward, his arms still wrapped protectively around me, motionless as a stone. I shot a look at his face – it was calm, patient. â€Å"I, er, don't know about that, Jake.† Jacob dropped the antagonistic faade completely. It was like he'd forgotten Edward was there, or at least he was determined to act that way. â€Å"I miss you every day, Bella. It's not the same without you.† â€Å"I know and I'm sorry, Jake, I just . . .† He shook his head, and sighed. â€Å"I know. Doesn't matter, right? I guess I'll survive or something. Who needs friends?† He grimaced, trying to cover the pain with a thin attempt at bravado. Jacob's suffering had always triggered my protective side. It was not entirely rational – Jacob was hardly in need of any physical protection I could offer. But my arms, pinned beneath Edward's, yearned to reach out to him. To wrap around his big, warm waist in a silent promise of acceptance and comfort. Edward's shielding arms had become restraints. â€Å"Okay, get to class,† a stern voice sounded behind us. â€Å"Move along, Mr. Crowley.† â€Å"Get to school, Jake,† I whispered, anxious as soon as I recognized the principal's voice. Jacob went to the Quileute school, but he might still get in trouble for trespassing or the equivalent. Edward released me, taking just my hand and pulling me behind his body again. Mr. Greene pushed through the circle of spectators, his brows pressing down like ominous storm clouds over his small eyes. â€Å"I mean it,† he was threatening. â€Å"Detention for anyone who's still standing here when I turn around again.† The audience melted away before he was finished with his sentence. â€Å"Ah, Mr. Cullen. Do we have a problem here?† â€Å"Not at all, Mr. Greene. We were just on our way to class.† â€Å"Excellent. I don't seem to recognize your friend.† Mr. Greene turned his glower on Jacob. â€Å"Are you a new student here?† Mr. Greene's eyes scrutinized Jacob, and I could see that he'd come to the same conclusion everyone else had: dangerous. A troublemaker. â€Å"Nope,† Jacob answered, half a smirk on his broad lips. â€Å"Then I suggest you remove yourself from school property at once, young man, before I call the police.† Jacob's little smirk became a full-blown grin, and I knew he was picturing Charlie showing up to arrest him. This grin was too bitter, too full of mocking to satisfy me. This wasn't the smile I'd been waiting to see. Jacob said, â€Å"Yes, sir,† and snapped a military salute before he climbed on his bike and kicked it to a start right there on the sidewalk. The engine snarled and then the tires squealed as he spun it sharply around. In a matter of seconds, Jacob raced out of sight. Mr. Greene gnashed his teeth together while he watched the performance. â€Å"Mr. Cullen, I expect you to ask your friend to refrain from trespassing again.† â€Å"He's no friend of mine, Mr. Greene, but I'll pass along the warning.† Mr. Greene pursed his lips. Edward's perfect grades and spotless record were clearly a factor in Mr. Greene's assessment of the incident. â€Å"I see. If you're worried about any trouble, I'd be happy to -â€Å" â€Å"There's nothing to worry about, Mr. Greene. There won't be any trouble.† â€Å"I hope that's correct. Well, then. On to class. You, too, Miss Swan.† Edward nodded, and pulled me quickly along toward the English building. â€Å"Do you feel well enough to go to class?† he whispered when we were past the principal. â€Å"Yes,† I whispered back, not quite sure if this was a lie. Whether I felt well or not was hardly the most important consideration. I needed to talk to Edward right away, and English class wasn't the ideal place for the conversation I had in mind. But with Mr. Greene right behind us, there weren't a lot of other options. We got to class a little late and took our seats quickly. Mr. Berty was reciting a Frost poem. He ignored our entrance, refusing to let us break his rhythm. I yanked a blank page out of my notebook and started writing, my handwriting more illegible than normal thanks to my agitation. What happened? Tell me everything. And screw the protecting me crap, please. I shoved the note at Edward. He sighed, and then began writing. It took him less time than me, though he wrote an entire paragraph in his own personal calligraphy before he slipped the paper back. Alice saw that Victoria was coming back. I took you out of town merely as a precaution – there was never a chance that she would have gotten anywhere close to you. Emmett and Jasper very nearly had her, but Victoria seems to have some instinct for evasion. She escaped right down the Quileute boundary line as if she were reading it from a map. It didn't help that Alice's abilities were nullified by the Quileutes' involvement. To be fair, the Quileutes might have had her, too, if we hadn't gotten in the way. The big gray one thought Emmett was over the line, and he got defensive. Of course Rosalie reacted to that, and everyone left the chase to protect their companions. Carlisle and Jasper got things calmed down before it got out of hand. But by then, Victoria had slipped away. That's everything. I frowned at the letters on the page. All of them had been in on it – Emmett, Jasper, Alice, Rosalie, and Carlisle. Maybe even Esme, though he hadn't mentioned her. And then Paul and the rest of the Quileute pack. It might so easily have turned into a fight, pitting my future family and my old friends against each other. Any one of them could have been hurt. I imagined the wolves would be in the most danger, but picturing tiny Alice next to one of the huge werewolves, fighting . . . I shuddered. Carefully, I scrubbed out the entire paragraph with my eraser and then I wrote over the top: What about Charlie? She could have been after him. Edward was shaking his head before I finished, obviously going to downplay any danger on Charlie's behalf. He held a hand out, but I ignored that and started again. You can't know that she wasn't thinking that, because you weren't here. Florida was a bad idea. He took the paper from underneath my hand. I wasn't about to send you off alone. With your luck, not even the black box would survive. That wasn't what I'd meant at all; I hadn't thought of going without him. I'd meant that we should have stayed here together. But I was sidetracked by his response, and a little miffed. Like I couldn't fly cross country without bringing the plane down. Very funny. So let's say my bad luck did crash the plane. What exactly were you going to do about it? Why is the plane crashing? He was trying to hide a smile now. The pilots are passed out drunk. Easy. I'd fly the plane. Of course. I pursed my lips and tried again. Both engines have exploded and we're falling in a death spiral toward the earth. I'd wait till we were close enough to the ground, get a good grip on you, kick out the wall, and jump. Then I'd run you back to the scene of the accident, and we'd stumble around like the two luckiest survivors in history. I stared at him wordlessly. â€Å"What?† he whispered. I shook my head in awe. â€Å"Nothing,† I mouthed. I scrubbed out the disconcerting conversation and wrote one more line. You will tell me next time. I knew there would be a next time. The pattern would continue until someone lost. Edward stared into my eyes for a long moment. I wondered what my face looked like – it felt cold, so the blood hadn't returned to my cheeks. My eyelashes were still wet. He sighed and then nodded once. Thanks. The paper disappeared from under my hand. I looked up, blinkingin surprise, just as Mr. Berty came down the aisle. â€Å"Is that something you'd like to share there, Mr. Cullen?† Edward looked up innocently and held out the sheet of paper on top of his folder. â€Å"My notes?† he asked, sounding confused. Mr. Berty scanned the notes – no doubt a perfect transcription of his lecture – and then walked away frowning. It was later, in Calculus – my one class without Edward – that I heard the gossip. â€Å"My money's on the big Indian,† someone was saying. I peeked up to see that Tyler, Mike, Austin, and Ben had their heads bent together, deep in conversation. â€Å"Yeah,† Mike whispered. â€Å"Did you see the size of that Jacob kid? I think he could take Cullen down.† Mike sounded pleased by the idea. â€Å"I don't think so,† Ben disagreed. â€Å"There's something about Edward. He's always so . . . confident. I have a feeling he can take care of himself.† â€Å"I'm with Ben,† Tyler agreed. â€Å"Besides, if that other kid messed Edward up, you know those big brothers of his would get involved.† â€Å"Have you been down to La Push lately?† Mike asked. â€Å"Lauren and I went to the beach a couple of weeks ago, and believe me, Jacob's friends are all just as big as he is.† â€Å"Huh,† Tyler said. â€Å"Too bad it didn't turn into anything. Guess we'll never know how it would have turned out.† â€Å"It didn't look over to me,† Austin said. â€Å"Maybe we'll get to see.† Mike grinned. â€Å"Anyone in the mood for a bet?† â€Å"Ten on Jacob,† Austin said at once. â€Å"Ten on Cullen,† Tyler chimed in. â€Å"Ten on Edward,† Ben agreed. â€Å"Jacob,† Mike said. â€Å"Hey, do you guys know what it was about?† Austin wondered. â€Å"That might affect the odds.† â€Å"I can guess,† Mike said, and then he shot a glance at me at the same time that Ben and Tyler did. From their expressions, none of them had realized I was in easy hearing distance. They all looked away quickly, shuffling the papers on their desks. â€Å"I still say Jacob,† Mike muttered under his breath.