Job Analysis: Job Description and Specification

Before understanding what job analysis is all about, it’s better to understand the terms related to job analysis. These are task, position, job and occupation.
Task: A task is defined as an action or a course of action done to produce desirable results. A task is part of a set of actions which accomplish a job, problem or assignment. So task is the unit for any specified job.
Position: A position is the group of similar tasks and responsibilities assigned to a particular. Position is commonly identified by the job title. Positions are defined on the basis of department or sector to which a particular belongs. Position of a person in marketing sector is different to that of finance.
Job: A group of positions those are similar at the level of work. Sometimes position = job, this is because no similar job exists. For example, there may be one personal manager in a small business because there is no similar position in that organization. Also we take large banks into account, there are many cashiers (one job) but works or tasks may not be similar (many positions).
Occupation: Occupation is the group of jobs that are similar within a particular industry or a country. Thus it is the category of work found similar in many firms. For example, Manager in banks has different jobs in comparison to Manager of an event.
TASK POSITION JOB OCCUPATION
Job Analysis may be defined as the analyzing a concerned job and determine in detail the particular objectives and requirements and relative importance of these duties. Job analysis is the process where judgments or decisions are made on the data collected on a job. There are many ways to collect data, the most common are interviewing persons on the job or watching the working environment through camera.
The job analysis may include these activities:
• reviewing the job responsibilities of current employees,
• doing Internet research and viewing sample job descriptions online or offline highlighting similar jobs,
• analyzing the work duties, tasks, and responsibilities that need to be accomplished by the employee filling the position,
• researching and sharing with other companies that have similar jobs, and
• articulation of the most important outcomes or contributions needed from the position.
The aspects of job analysis include: job description and job specification
1. Job Description: Job description is an organized, factual statement of the duties and responsibilities of a specific job. Thus it is the appropriate and authorized content of a job. Typically, they also include to whom the position reports, specifications such as the qualifications needed by the person in the job, salary range for the position, etc. Job descriptions are usually developed by conducting a job analysis, which includes examining the tasks and sequences of tasks necessary to perform the job. The analysis looks at the areas of knowledge and skills needed by the job. Normally job description today is meant for advertising purpose. Also, it is used to produce the ethics, rules and regulations practiced within an organization.
Effective Job description should:
 Indicate the scope and nature of the work.
 Should be clear regarding the work of the position, duties etc.
 Definition of unusual terms.
 The kind of work to be performed and degree of complexity.
 The degree of skill required.
 The extent of workers responsibility for each phase of work.
 Salary levels: Pay, D.A and other allowances and bonus.
 Supervision given and received.
 Conditions of work: location, time, speed of work, accuracy, health and accident hazards.
Job Description: What the job actually is!
• Job Specification: Job specification is judging and selecting a prospective candidate for a specific job. It is the written statement of qualifications, traits, physical and mental characteristics that a candidate must possess to qualify for the job and discharge his responsibilities effectively. Thus job specification should include
 Degree of education
 Desirable amount of experience in previous job.
 Specific skills required.
 Health considerations.
Job specifications should be able to specify the following specifications:
 Physical specifications: This includes the physical qualifications or capacities that vary on the job category. These include height, weight, age, weight lifting capacity, hearing capacity, machine operating conditions etc.
 Mental Specifications: This includes normally the ability to perform mathematical calculations, judgment ability, reading ability, degree of concentration etc.
 Emotional and Social Specifications: These hold importance for the post of manager. These include emotional stability, flexibility, social adaptability in human relationships, personal appearance including dress, posture etc.
 Behavioral Shape: Plays an important role in selecting candidates for higher level of jobs in the organizational hierarchy. This include research, creativity, self-reliance, dominance etc.

Reva:First Electric Car(EV) of India

Reva, as a car can be described as small, environmental friendly, cost effective, no parking tension and at last but not least a perfect driving component with your loved one.
Reva is India's first Electric Battery Operated Car. It was designed keeping in mind the need for the decrease of the pollution levels of the cities. Reva was introduced in India in 2001. Reva has received certification from (ARAI) Automotive Research Association of India and EEC (European Economic Community), which has led to the export of Reva's to UK. Reva has a life span of about 40,000 km and its running cost is approximately 40 paise per kilometer. Reva has the best safety features as well according to world standards of today. Reva offers you a wide variety of colors to choose from it's over 2000 shades and it can be customized as well.
Car description:
Manufacturer: REVA Electric Car Company
Door: 2 door hatchback
Fully automatic: no clutch, no gear
Tubeless tyres
Cost only 40paise/ km (company estimation)
Easy to use
Energy absorbing bumpers
Rear foldable seats
Payload: 227-240 kg
Top Speed: 80 km/h
Charge time: 100% in 8 hr
Length: 2.6 m
Width: 1.3 m
Height: 1.5 m

Future:
By 2009, high performance lithium-ion batteries are expected to be available for the latest model. A lithium- ion battery offers quick charging and will offer great speed. The anticipated new range for REVA with lithium- ion batteries is expected to be 112 km or more. With increase in oil prices and market financial crisis it seems to increase in the popularity of Reva. Also increase in the demand of cars in India day by day seems to be good for automobile industry.

Reva’s Investors profile
1. Global Environment Fund:
GEF was founded in 1990 by Dr. Jeffrey Leonard, President and CEO, and John Earhart, Chairman of the Board, on the principle that capital deployed with a disciplined approach in specific sectors can bring significant improvements to the environment and quality of life throughout the world. GEF has grown to be one of the premier global private equity groups investing in the environment. In recent years, the GEF investment team has completed more than 30 private equity or early-stage technology investments in businesses operating in a broad array of economic sectors and in all of the world’s major geographical regions. The Global Environment Fund (GEF) invests in businesses around the world that provide cost-effective solutions to environmental and energy challenges. The firm manages private equity dedicated to clean technology, emerging markets, and sustainable forestry, with approximately $1 billion in aggregate capital under management. GEF’s investors include prominent endowments, foundations, family offices, and pension funds.
The team invests in emerging markets across the globe, with a special emphasis on China, India, Brazil, Turkey, Mexico, South Africa, Southeast Asia, and Eastern Europe. GEF has a strong local and international support all over the world, in which YES Bank, Mumbai participate from India side.
2. Draper Fisher Jurvetson:
Draper Fisher Jurvetson (DFJ) is a venture capital firm based in Menlo Park, California with affiliate offices in more than 30 cities around the world and over $4.5 billion in capital commitments. Since its founding in 1985, DFJ has been proud to back over 500 companies across many sectors including such industry changing successes such as Hotmail (acquired by MSFT), Baidu (BIDU), Skype (acquired by EBAY), United Online (UNTD), Overture (acquired by YHOO), Athenahealth (ATHN), EnerNOC (ENOC), TicketsNow (acquired by TicketMaster), Feedburner (acquired by Google), Interwoven (IWOV), Four11 (acquired by YHOO), Parametric (PMTC), and Digidesign (acquired by AVID).
Official website of DFJ has everything for everyone. Weather you are enterprenuer, journalist or a job seeker, DFJ fulfills everyone's dream. If someone has a Business Plan, they can submit to DFJ to backup them. DFJ backs extraordinary entrepreneurs everywhere who set out to change the world.

Conclusion:
Thus Reva is like a dream comes true, especially for Chetan Maini. With present capacity of 6000/ yearly, company decides to expand its production capacity to 60,000. Company is also deciding to expand recently towards east India. Reva is getting huge incentives outside India in comparison to its home country. In Britain and Norway it sells as a G-Wiz, and is exempt from parking fees and road taxes. Japan gives a subsidy for electric car users while France waives taxes on electricity used to charge the car. So India should care its born and should take initiatives to promote it.

Reva: Born by Passion

Man behind Reva: Chetan Maini
Den: Bangalore
Passion: Flying remote controlled plane models and building cars from scratch.
Hobbies: Mountain Biking, Off road motorcycling, Hiking and Microlight flying.
Birth of passion: When he was in sixth standard, Manali built a remote control toy car and won a school prize.
Education: A mechanical engineer from University of Michigan
As the father of Reva: He was working up with Amerigon, an automobile company working on electric vehicle technology. And that is where the idea of Reva born.
Introduction to Home land: Maini introduced Reva in India in 2001.
Care taker of Reva: In 2006, Draper Fisher Jurveston and Global Environment Fund helped Reva with $ 20 million.
Current production capacity: 6,000.
Global presence: Britain, Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Norway, Malta, Spain and Sri Lanka.

World Financial Cricis and its Impacts

World Financial crisis hasn’t left any industry or any part of the world. Job cuts, leave without pay, reducing regional offices, marketing and advertisement cuts, restricting bonus pay etc are the common steps that are taken by the organizations worldwide to fight this financial meltdown.
Jet Airways, major player in aviation industry of India had lay off 800 staffs on 13th October 2008.The move comes a day when Kingfisher and Jet Airways glued to form an alliance to reduce costs and improve operational efficiencies. But the political pressures by Indian political parties like Shiv Sena and Maharastra Navnirman Sena, headed by Raj Thackeray forced Naresh Goel, chief Jet Airways to take off his decision back.
Just after three days on 16th October 2008, Air India offered its 15,000 staffers leave without pay to save Rs 75,000,000 annually. But according to the statement of Aviation Minister, Praful Patel given on 21st October 2008, there will be no job cuts in Air India.
Kingfisher Airlines, headed by Vijaya Mallaya had also decided to cut salary by 10% from the present digits. Also trainee pilots will be hired on a fixed salary of Rs 20,000.
Meltdown also has profound effect on Auto Industry. ‘Cut in production’ is the eminent step taken by the most. India’s biggest auto company disengaged its 300 temporary employee at Jamshedpur unit. Mahindra & Mahindra, the country’s leading manufacturer of utility vehicles generally deploys more than 600 temporary workers at its Nasik Plant. All India Trade Union Congress confessed that down turn has forced company to trim their workforce.
In Banking sector, Cholamandalam DBS finance Ltd, joints venture of DBS Bank of Singapore & $ 2.4 billion Murugappa group has decided to close 75 of its 260 branches and also sees of nearly 200 employees. Its wonder that till now private banking giants like HDFC and ICICI has not taken steps like this!
In IT sector, Infosys has denied on any job cuts. In the 2nd week of October there was rumor that consultancy major TCS may cut variable pay, but after the Q2 result, TCS on 21st October decided to give full component of variable pay for the 2nd quarter of this fiscal. Call centers and business process outsourcing providers are among industry sectors in India that are likely to cut more than 25 percent of their staffing in the next 10 days, according to a report by a trade body.
Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) said jobs cut would be across steel, cement, construction, real estate, aviation, It-enabled services and Financial services sector.
Meltdown is not only affecting main industries but also the education sector especially professional courses. Twelve brilliant students of IIT- Kharagpur who were selected through campus last year by US based IT firms have received regret letters in September stating that they cannot be taken because of internal re-organizing. Presently Aviation Professional courses popularity is decreasing by seeing the present scenario. But people from the industry are debating that recession is the short term process and education and career should not be judged by comparing up with global crisis, as it will affect the every sector.

Modern Retailing in India

1. Organized and modern retailing form around 9% of the total retail in the country.
2. Modern retail refers to stores operating in experiential formats and providing customers with a pleasurable shopping environment.
3. Some steps that given new turn to modern retailing in India are
a) Launch of retail venture by Reliance Industries- ‘Reliance Fresh’ and ‘Reliance Digital’.
b) Other significant development is the announcement of the global retail giant –‘Wall Mart’, entry into India for setting up stores through franchise agreement with the Sunil Mittal’s Bharti Group.
4. The size of modern retailing put together is around $ 29 million in India.
5. India’s retail progress is so rapid that it has been ranked for the second year in 2006 in the Global Retail Development Index (GDRI) as the most attractive market for the global retailers to enter.
6. Organized retail in India is expected to grow at the rate of 35%.
7. It is estimated that organized retailing will be 20% of the total retailing by the end of year 2008.
8. According to reports, India retail industry is the largest industry in India with an employment of around eight percent. This industry contributes to over 10 percent of the country's GDP. It is expected that by 2016 modern retail industry in India will be worth $175- 200 billion.
9. India is one of the largest producers of fruits and vegetables in the world. Moreover, India's food market is valued at $70 billion, which is doubling every three years.
10. The Retail Sector is the largest sector in India after agriculture, accounting for over 10 per cent of the country’s GDP and around 8 per cent of the employment.

ATTRITION

A reduction in the number of employees through retirement, resignation or death is called attrition.
Annual attrition rate in India (2008) is 20-30%. High as 44% in BFSI ( Banking, Financial services and Insurance) and 35% in BPO Industry.
----------- HINDU
Attrition rate – The rate of shrinkage in the size or number in the human resource in a company or in an organization.

Is Attrition always bad?
No, Its benefits an organization when certain employees leave, whose continuation of service would have negatively impacted productivity and profitability of the company. There are also some people who have negative and demoralizing influence on the work culture and team spirit.
The term ‘healthy attrition’ is used to signify the importance of less productive employees voluntarily leaving the organization.
Good attrition minimizes the adverse impact on the business while bad attrition accentuates the loss.
Attrition and women
The high percentage of the females in the workforce (constituting 30-35% of the total), adds to the high attrition rate. Most women leave their jobs either after marriage or social pressure caused by the irregular working hours of the industry.
In trainee batches, when you have 30-40% young women coming together with young men, they get to know each other and get married.
Reasons of Attrition
1. Non-flexible schedules.
2. Non- progressive career path.
3. Aspirations to join more stable company.
4. Social and biological causes.
5. Grown to age and medical problems.
6. Fail to perform the given responsibilities.
7. Love and affection, results to marriage.
How to fight Attrition
1. Use of technology in finding the cause of attrition:- Early Warning System(EWS), utilizes proprietary software that tracks agent behavior and indicates evens such as declining or fluctuating productivity, increased rate of absenteeism, rejection for internal job postings, drop in call quality etc( Attrition Forecasting).
2. Three million students graduate every year out of which only 10% are employable by the BPO Industry. If this number could increased, attrition in BPO would come down.
3. Homemakers to fight attrition: BPO players now switching to non- conventional talent pool to meet its work force expansion needs. These include housewives, retired personnel and physically challenged persons.
4. Campus Ambassador Program: Helps not only in talent sourcing but also in increasing the talent pool.Creating brand equity in the eyes of potential employees and hiring for retaining purpose.
5. Attrition can be reduced by finding ‘right candidate' and building a conductive work environment which will be beneficial.
6. Internally most HR managers are busy putting in efforts on the development of their employees building innovative retention and motivational schemes (which was money oriented so far) and making the environment livelier.
7. Externally the focus is on creating awareness through seminars & going to campus for recruitment.

RATAN TATA

Ratan Tata
Born: - December 28, 1937
Occupation: - Chairmen of Tata group.
Marital Status: - Never Married.
Parents: - naval and Soonoo Tata.
Dates:-
1971:- Appointed as the Director In charge of the National Radio Electronics Company limited (Nelco).
At that time Nelco had 2% market share and a loss margin of 40%.
1972-75:- Nelco grow eventually to have a market share of 20% and recovered its losses. But
Declaration of emergency by Prime Minister Indra Gandhi and union problems in 1997,
did not let venture to survive.
1977:- Ratan was entrusted with Empress Mills , a textile mill controlled by Tatas. At that time it was one
of the few sick units of Tata group. But competition from less labour- intensive enterprises and
Modern mills made number of companies, including empress mill unviable. So some directors,
Chiefly Nami Palkhivala, took the line that Tatas should liquidate the mill, which was finally closed
in 1986.
1981:- Ratan was named as Chairman of Tata Industries, the groups other holding company.
1991:- He took over as group chairman from JRD Tata. Since then he has been instrumental in reshaping the fortunes of Tata group.
• Today Tata group has the largest market capitalization of any business house on the Indian stock market.
• On Jan 31, 2007, Tata sons acquired Corus group an Anglo-Dutch steel and aluminum producer. The merger created the fifth largest producer of steel in the world.
• Ratan Tata’s dream of manufacturing a car worth Rs 1000000 was launched in New Delhi Auto Expo on Jan 10,2008
• Tata Motors under Ratan Tata bought over Jaguar & Land Rover from Ford Motor Company for $ 1.5 billion ($2.3billion).

Awards
1. On the Occasion of 26th Jan 2000, Ratan Tata was honored with the Padma Bhushan, the third highest decoration that may be awarded to a civilian.
2. On 26th Jan 2008, he was awarded the Padma Vibhusan, the 2nd highest civilian decoration.

WORK-LIFE IMBALANCE

Work-life balance is a person’s control over the conditions in their workplace. It is accomplished when an individual feels dually satisfied about their personal life and their paid occupation. It mutually benefits the individual, business and society when a person’s personal life is balanced with his or her own job.
And when the situation get reversed, i.e one has no control on his/her life, driven by other forces, get workaholic etc, then one’s life get imbalanced, affecting personal and social life as well as working capacity, what is termed as work-life imbalance.
Imbalance in life and work may occur due to many reasons. It’s not always the employer who makes the life of employee, a hell.
REASONS:
1. The main culprit for the growing gap between work and life is globalization and the "productivity" pressures it's causing that are undermining progressive policies and a focus on equity in the workplace. The meaning of efficiency in present global-economic climate is that involve fewer people doing more work as well as myths and assumptions that characterize 'ideal' workers as those who can work as though they have few or no outside responsibilities outside of paid work.

2. Connectivity technology—e-mails, cell phones, PDA’s and other gadgets— make it easier than ever to keep in touch with goings-on in the office, allowing today’s workforce to save time and be more accessible. However, experts say they have the potential to do more harm than good. These lovely things really make our life hell. These let us attached to our paid work 24x7.

3. Ambitions and Prestige- are the reasons that are created from the employee side itself. It makes an employee workaholic and cut him from the rest of the world. One thinks that he/ she can balance or manage his/ her life after achieving dreams and ambitions but is should not be forgotten that ‘making life balance’ is a slow and continuous process.

4. Money is honey-Last but not the least, employee get paid extra for the extra effort as well as employer get more profits because of extra efforts and sincerity.

7 WAYS TO FIND WORK LIFE BALANCE:

1. ONE LIFE ONE DAY BOOK: Keeping separate calendars can easily lead to conflicts between work tasks and home-life commitments. By scheduling everything in the same place, you're less likely to get confused between your cell calls and sweet song of your daughter or beloved.
2. CAN’T SPARE A WEEK? TAKE AN HOUR: You don't always need an extended vacation to unwind. Instead, set aside an hour each day to enjoy something completely unrelated to work -- a short walk, a workout, or a chapter or two in a book. Quality, not quantity.
3. AUDIT YOUR WEEKLY SCHEDULE: Keep a log of everything you do during the week, from meetings to commuting to watching TV. With a sense of how the scales tip to one side or the other, you'll be better able to re-balance them.
4. PLAN AND PROTECT DOWNTIME: Don't take leisure time for granted. A day in front of the TV is no substitute for a round of golf, a trip to the beach, or a BBQ with friends.
5. KNOW YOUR OPTION: More than ever, new technology is offering employers and employees alike greater flexibility with work schedules. This includes everything from a compressed workweek, to flex hours, job-sharing, and telecommuting.
6. GET YOUR PRIORITIES STRAIGHT: Take the time to decide what's important for you. Then, try devoting your full attention to one thing at a time -- concentrate on work at work and family at home.
7. STOP BEING BOSS EVERYWERE: Entrepreneurs tend to be control freaks. That can be good for business, but bad for downtime. Whether it's paying the bills or organizing a trip, why not let family and friends run the business of your life every now and then?


CONCLUSION:
Seals don't balance balls on their noses for fun; they do it for fish. People don't try to achieve work/life balance for fun; they do it to survive. This means that balancing life with our paid work is not a fun or makes our life easier but it creates a path for us on whom we can schedule our whole responsibilities, likes, dislikes, hobbies etc on the same way. In fact balancing a life with work is itself a tough job.

Kiran Mazumdar Shaw-Admired Businesswoman

KIRAN MAZUMDAR SHAW
Born: 23 March, 1953
First job: Brewer at Carlton & United Breweries
Current Position: Chairman and Managing Director, Biocon
Group Turnover: Rs.1090.2 crore( Q1-2008 )
Group Net Profit: Rs.200.25 crore ( Q1-2008 )
Key Business Area: Biopharmaaceuticals
Biocon was founded in the backyard of a suburban house in Bangalore in 1978 as a small operation of enzyme extraction. The woman behind Biocon - Kiran Mazumdar Shaw (Kiran) who dreamt of starting her own business with just Rs. 10,000 in hand and a degree in brewery - is now the richest woman in India. The case study describes how Kiran recognized the future potential of biotechnology industry when not many people in India knew about it.Over the years, the company grew under her stewardship and is today the biggest biopharmaceutical firm in India. In 2004, Biocon went for an IPO and the issue was over-subscribed by over 30 times. Post-IPO, Shaw held close to 40% of the stock of the company and was regarded as India’s richest woman with an estimated worth of Rs. 2,100 crore (~U.S. $ 480 million).
After schooling at Bishop Cotton Girls School,Ms. Shaw received a graduate honours degree in Zoology from Bangalore University (1973) and qualified as a Master Brewer from Ballarat University, Australia (1975). Ms. Shaw also received an honorary Doctorate of Science, from her alma mater, Ballarat University, in recognition of her pre-eminent contributions to the field of Biotechnology. Recently she also received an Honorary Doctorate from the Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), in recognition of her outstanding achievements in biotechnology and industrial enzymes.
Ms. Shaw is the recipient of several prestigious awards including the ET Businesswoman of the Year, Best Woman Entrepreneur, Model Employer, Ernst & Young's Entrepreneur of the Year Award for Life Sciences & Healthcare, Leading Exporter, Outstanding Citizen, Technology Pioneer, etc. Her most cherished awards are however, the PADMASHRI (1989) and PADMA BHUSHAN (2005) presented to her by the President of India, for her pioneering efforts in Industrial Biotechnology.
She is married to John Shaw, a Scotsman and Indophile, who headed a leading textiles MNC, Madura Coats from 1991-1998 as Chairman and Managing Director. John Shaw has since joined Biocon as Director, International Business and is the Vice Chairman of the Board.

Fact figures: Reliance

1. Reliance group was founded by Dhirubhai Ambani.
2. Dhirubhai started his first textile mill in year 1966.
3. Anil Ambani was the first Indian to be awarded - Wharton School Dean's medal.
4. Mukesh Ambani has got the tag of richest person of the world.
5. Anil Ambani personal stake in reliance communications is 66%.

Biocon Q1 profit graph down

Indian based Biotechnology firm on Thursday announced consolidated net profit of Rs.15.02 crore for the first quarter of 2008. Thus a decline of 71.66 % over the year ago period of i.e first quarter of year 2007, on account of rupee fluctuation.
The company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs.53 crore in the first quarter of 2007, previous year.
The consolidated total income however, rose to Rs.276.53 crore in the latest quarter from Rs.272.21 crore a year ago.
Biocon has been featured amongst the top 25 global biotechnology companies according to a report released by Med Ad News.

25% Profit in 1st Quater for HDFC

Housing Development Finance Corporation(HDFC), on Wednesday reported a net profit of Rs.468.11 crore in the first quarter ended June 30, a 25.56% over Rs.372.81 crore in the corresponding period a year ago.
Thus total income rose to Rs.2,318.62 crore in the first quarter of 2008 from 1,830.39 crore of the 2nd quarter of previous year.

Electronic Commerce

To make someone understood what Electronic Commerce exactly is in one sentence then we can define it as ‘Use of electronic system in the matter of business or commerce for buying, selling, delivery of information, payments and services at reasonable costs is known as Electronic Commerce’.
Depending on whom you ask, electronic commerce has different definitions:
From a communication perspective, electronic commerce is the delivery of information, products/services, or payments via telephone lines, computer networks, or any other means.
From a business prospective, electronic commerce is the application of technology towards the automation of business transactions and workflows.
From a service point of view, electronic commerce is a tool that addresses the desire of firms, consumers, and management to cut service costs while improving the quality of goods and increasing the speed of delivery.
From online perspective, electronic commerce provides the capability of buying and selling of products and information on the internet or other online services.
Part of difficulty in understanding Electronic commerce lies in the fact that the growth of Electronic Commerce is happening so quickly and in many directions that even experts are at loss to find any established business model for comparison.
‘Doing Business Online’ sounds technical, and organizations often delegate the task to the technical departments. A better approach is to develop a cross functional team composed of technical staff as well as marketing and financial personnel.
Thus today, technology is seen as a major driver of corporate strategy and business re-engineering.

What is the difference between Saving and Investment?

Saving is in our daily life generally means as putting money aside for rainy days. Just to keep money in bank or some where like soaks –. So it means you save particular amount of money for your future use. But if we consider saving with economic point of view than the definition is little changed. According to economics, saving is the personal disposable income minus personal consumption expenditure. It means the money which does not consumed immediately for buying goods. Or a part of income is saved. There is no risk factor involve.

As far as we are talking about investment than it is certain amount of money which is saved or use in some projects or certificates where we can take profit more than the money we have saved or invest. In general terms investment means the use of money to make more money. According to economics it is the production per unit time of goods are not consumed but use for future production. Example on purchase of saving certificate there we get certain interest value which is more than our saved amount. But in some cases if you purchase shares there always a risk factor involves. Because in that case we might get a loss on amount we invest.

What is mutual fund?

ABN Amro Asset Mgmt India, Benchmark MF, Birla Sun Life MF, BoB MF, Canbank MF, DBS Chola MF, Deutsche MF, DSP Merrill Lynch MF, Escorts MF, Fidelity Fund Management, Franklin Temtation MF, HDFC MF, HSBC MF, ICICI Prudential MF, ING Vysya MF, JM MF, Kotak Mahindra MF, LIC MF, Lotus India MF, Morgan Stanley MF, Principal MF, Quantum Asset Management, Reliance Capital MF, Sahara MF,SBI MF, Standard Chartered MF, Sundaram BNP Paribas MF, Tata MF, Taurus MF, UTI MF
In our life all of us save or invest for our future. Many use to save their savings at the bank in saving accounts for merely 6-7% interest annually while some invest in government bonds, policies, fixed deposits (rate of interest is higher than saving accounts) or other securities.
But persons who believe that risk taking are the key of money making, invest in stocks. Yes stocks in average give the higher return in comparison to other investments. But one fact is also that everybody doesn’t have the same time flexibility as well as right concept of the market. So a person who lacks one or both the factors may not invest in stocks! No it’s not like that, thanks to mutual funds. These investment vehicles don’t demand that you have a deep understanding of financial matters; they don’t even demand oodles of your time. The mantra of mutual fund is ‘strength works’. They collect money from a large group of investors, pool it together, and invest it in various securities, in line with their objective. They are an alternative to invest directly.
Thus a mutual Fund is a trust that pools the savings of a number of investors who share a common financial goal. The money thus collected is then invested in capital market instruments such as shares, debentures and other securities. The income earned through these investments and the capital appreciation realized is shared by its unit holders in proportion to the number of units owned by them.
Mutual fund offer several features that make a powerful and convenient wealth creation box worthy of your consideration. These are Small Investments they offer, Offer of Diversified portfolio, Professional management of our investment, Sharing or managing Liquidity, Tax saving or Tax break schemes etc.
AMFI, The Association of Mutual Funds in India is the association which look after the interest of both unit holders in funds as well promoting the interests of mutual funds: WEBSITE OF AMFI

Finance Minister of India

Mr. Palaniappan Chidambaram is the Finance Minister of India in the Congress Party led United Progressive Alliance Government which took office in May, 2004. Mr. Chidambaram had earlier been Finance Minister from June, 1996 to March, 1998. He is recognized both in India and in the wider international business community as a champion of economic reforms who believes that countries which are open to competition have succeeded in removing poverty.

He studied at Presidency College, Chennai, India and obtained a Bachelor of Science degree. He also received a Bachelor of Law degree at the Law College, Madras University. He subsequently attended the Harvard Business School and was awarded a Masters in Business Administration.
He can be reached by e-mail at fm@finance.nic.in.
Official website of Finance Minister of India is: Website

What is Common stock?

WHAT IS COMMON STOCK?
Common stocks are the primary unit of ownership in a corporation with certain rights including voting and major issues concerning corporation. Shareholders as they are known have liability to the value of stocks. So generally common stocks are issued to the Founders, Board of directors, or employees through employee stock option program.
The holders of common stock can reap two main benefits from the issuing company: capital appreciation and dividends. Capital appreciation is rise in the value of assets based on the rise in market price. For example, say you have purchased a share for Rs 10/ per share, which pays dividend of Re 1/year and now trading at Rs 15/per share a year later. Your capital appreciation will be Rs5 or 50%.
Dividend as explained in earlier posts, are the payments made by the corporation to its shareholder members when it earns profit. Joint Stock Company allocates a fixed amount per share while Co-operatives allocate dividends according to the shareholders performance and activity. Dividend can be paid in cash or additional number of shares.

How stocks trade?

When stocks are bought and sold, it’s called trading. So when you hear that Infosys is trading at 1870, it means if you buy one share of Infosys you will have to pay Rs1870,if you buy two shares then 2x1870, if ten share then 10x1870 and so on!
A Re 1 move in stock price is called a point. If Infosys goes from 1870 to 1871, you’d say that it rose to 1 point. Many investors purchase shares in blocks of 100. A block of shares is called a round lot. Round lot provide a convenient way to tackle your stock investments, because every round lot you own, 1 point move up and down adds or subtracts Rs 100 from the value of your investment.
For example, if you own 100 stocks of Infosys that means 100xRs 1870=Rs 187000. Suppose it rises 1 point then value of your hundred shares of Infosys will get added by Rs100, thus your investment will be Rs 187000+Rs 100. Also if it goes 1 point down then your investment value will be Rs 187000-Rs 100, thus your investment will decrease by Rs 100!

What are Preferred Stocks?

Preferred stock, also called preferred shares or preference shares, is typically a higher ranking stock than voting shares, thus carry no voting rights but may carry superior priority over common stock in the payment of dividends and upon liquidation. Preferred stock may carry a dividend that is paid out prior to any dividends to common stock holders. The main benefit to owning preferred stock is that the investor has a great claim on the company’s assets than common stockholders.
TYPES OF PREFFERED STOCKS:
1. CUMULATIVE PREFFERED: Preferred stocks on which dividends accrue (accumulate or increase) in the event when the issuer does not make timely dividend payments. Most preferred stocks are cumulative stocks.
2. NON-CUMULATIVE PREFERRED: Preferred stocks on which unpaid dividends are not accrue.
3. PARTICIPATING PREFERRED: Preferred stocks which provides a specific dividend that is paid before any dividend are paid to common stock holders in the event of liquidation.
4. CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED: Preferred stocks that can be converted into a specific amount of common stock at the holder’s option.
5. ADJUSTABLE RATE PERFERRED: Preferred stocks whose dividend changes, usually quarterly, according to changes in the Treasury bill or on a similar benchmark.
On the mark of preference Preferred stock can also be divided into two parts:
1. FIRST PREFERENCE STOCK: Preferred stock which takes precedence over other preferred and common stock with regard to dividends and assets.
2. SECOND PREFERENCE STOCK: Preferred stocks which have rights subordinate to those of other preferred stock on dividend and assets. That means they are given preference after the First Preferred Stock.

What are stocks?

Stocks are considered as the plural form of share, thus a stock represents a share of ownership in a corporation.
HISTORY:
It goes right at the time when East India Company was established in1600 AD. The innovation of joint ownership made a great deal of Europe's economic growth possible following the Middle Ages. The technique of pooling capital to finance the building of ships, for example, made the Netherlands a maritime superpower. Before adoption of the joint-stock corporation, an expensive venture such as the building of a merchant ship could be undertaken only by governments or by very wealthy individuals or families.
STOCKHOLDERS:
A shareholder (or stockholder) is an individual or company (including a corporation) that legally owns one or more shares of stock in a joint stock company. Shareholders are granted special privileges depending on the class of stock, including the right to vote (usually one vote per share owned) on matters such as elections to the board of directors, the right to share in distributions of the company's income, the right to purchase new shares issued by the company, and the right to a company's assets during a liquidation of the company.
Thus anyone holding at least 1 share in any company will be known as the shareholder.

What is share?

Share is the part which we get in process of dividing an entity. For example, three students reside in a single room of a hostel, which means that room is shared between three students. In other sense each students is one-third owner of that room. Sharing figures prominently in gift economies, but also plays a significant role in market economies. The word stock simply refers to a supply. You may have a stock of T-shirts in your closet or a stock of pencils at your desk. In the financial market, stock refers to a supply of money that a company has raised. This supply comes from people who have given money to the company in the hope that the company will make their money grow.
Suppose a group of persons or a business organization propose to start a new project, or want expansion of their company which they are unable to arrange, thus invite the public to be a part of the project. The company as per laws of the government announces the issue of shares through which any eligible person (18 or above in age, have a demat account) can become a shareholder of the company. For example, the value of ABC company has been divided into 100 shares and I own 10 shares of that company that means I am the owner of 10% in that company. In financial markets, a share is a unit of account for various financial instruments including stocks, mutual funds, limited partnerships, and REIT's. A share is one of a finite number of equal portions in the capital of a company, entitling the owner to a proportion of distributed, non-reinvested profits known as dividends (When a corporation earns a profit or surplus, that money can be paid to the shareholders as a dividend.) , and to a portion of the value of the company in case of liquidation( refers to the process by which a company or part of a company is brought to an end, and the assets and property of the company redistributed).