₦airaland Forum

Claus:
I think it's a bit unfair to criticize the poster.

It is well known in Nigeria that many rail tracks are not in use. In such cases, the reaonable thing to do before crossing is to check that the way is clear. The fact that the car in front stopped was a bit unlucky. One can argue that the poster could have anticipated such an event, but still, I believe this incident can happen to anyone.

Someone mentioned the U.K. At every rail crossing I've driven across in the U.K., there's a barrier that comes down, a red light flashes and a warning bell sounds when a train is near. It can actually take a few minutes before the train actually comes.

Basically, it is made abundantly clear that the tracks are in use, and what motorists need to do.

I commend the poster for putting the story up here because it will serve as a wake up call. Not necessarily to avoid police harrassment, but so that people are aware that even decrepit looking tracks may be in use and that they should take extra extra care, especially in the absence of warning signals or any clear instructions.

GOD BLESS YOU FOR THIS COMMENT!

lond07:
oops

A rail track that is practically not in use for like a decade. Even you yourself will fall into the same trap.

Granted, it is gradually coming back, but how many pple know it is partially coming back again . This is where you get to see responsible governance.

HOW MANY ABANDONED RAIL TRACKS DO YOU CROSS IN  LONDON? LET'S NOT APPORTION BLAME HERE, BOTH PARTIES ARE GUILTY!

THE POSTER IS GUILTY  FOR DRIVING ACROSS A RAIL TRACK AND ALSO CREATING AN 'ENABLING ENVIRONMENT' FOR THE NIGERIAN POLICE TO DO, WHAT THEY KNOW BEST


AND THE NIGERIAN POLICE, (SHAKING MY HEAD IN HORROR!) , MAY GOD HELP US ALL. WE STILL HAVE A LONG WAY TO GO!

GOD BLESS NIGERIA AND POSTER, THANKS FOR THE 'ADVANCE WARNING'

NIGERIANS AND THEIR 'CULTURE  OF BLAME EVERYBODY BUT MYSELF' FOR THE PREDICAMENT THAT I AM GOING THROUGH!
I DON'T SUPPORT WHAT THE POLICE HAS DONE IN ANYWAY, BUT I WANT TO ASK ONE QUESTION; IF THE POSTER HAD NOT CROSSED THE RAILWAY (DEEMED A TRAFFIC OFFENCE BY THE WAY) ,WHETHER IT IS IN USE OR, WHETHER THERE IS A SIGN THERE OR NOT, WILL THE POLICE ARREST HIM?

Nigerians and this 'culture of blame everybody else but myself', like one  poster rightly commented, what you did is a serious offence in the UK and even USA, that could earn you 'points' on your driving license, suspended driving for up to a year if not  more!,  a huge fine or even a suspended jail term!

musiwa.,.:
Obasanjo mistake was Ngozi iweala(husband igbo) , Soludo. Stock exchange, all igbos. You cant have one ethnic group in a sector.  nigeria is a multi ethnic country. And you saw what they did in the banking sector. Even while Igbo media pretend as if bank merge was a good thing. But really it was not a good thing to merge banks.

The bible says the heart of men is wicked that who knows it. Now you have a situation where Northerners feel hurt because of what Ngozi Iweala did in the banking sector. This is the reason the north did what they did with the help of Jonathan Goodluck to destroy Yorubas in the Banking sector. Even Obasanjo will now see them for who they are. And even Obasanjo is been investigated by the same Jonathan Goodluck.

You see While the north blame Obasanjo who is a Yoruba man who was president at the time of the bank merge.


You see when you merge banks, you destroy the economy, Ngozi Iweala/soludo knew that/ Ngozi Iweala was in the USA when the USA govt break up microsoft and Bell because of merge , they became a Monopoly.


Nobody in the world care about nigeria bank ranting that they shout about.  what bank merge mean is that they destroy jobs and new business.

So bringing the same Ngozi Iweala , I dont think is a smart move. she can not fix nigeria economy


http://www.wsws.org/articles/2000/jun2000/micr-j09.shtmljavascript:void(0);

I can't understand a word of what has been posted here. I had to read this post FOUR times, just to have an idea of the message, that, the poster is trying to convey. Oh my, the analysis is so off point! I am speechless : and shaking my head in HORROR!,

Pweety4me:
[color=#550077]A hurum gi nanya - igbo [/color]

Ifunanya!

musiwa.,.:
He went to university of ilorin with me.

NICE ONE, MORE GREASE TO HIS ELBOW. I AM REALLY IMPRESSED!

मैं तुमसे प्यार करता हूँ  -Hindi

私はあなたを愛し     -Japanese

Vi amo                   -Italian

tanimola22:
deenee and bookface, Thanks, I just wanted diverse opinions, I can see that you guys are justifying the 6-digit foreign currency you earn per annum, The responses have been exemplary! I will sit down, read them up and finally send them to the mates who preparing for the IB interview,

@deenee, is it really that possible to intern free of charge at Goldman? Men, I don't mind O, But I am MSc not MBA, How do I romance GS HR?


PS: I am in Western Europe, not the US.

Hello, I just spoke to a friend in GS and she said that that recruitment for 2012 intake will start in September. I am not sure if this is applicable to other regions (EMEA-Europe ,Middle East and Africa and Asia) because this information is for the Americas only-including Canada. Also you would need to have a work permit for your application to be considered.

If you applying for an analyst position, then your M.Sc qualification should suffice. Best of Luck!

Wow! A lot has happened in my short absence. Well, I agree with what, the initiator of the thread has written in one of his posts. There is no point derailing the thread so, let's stick to the topic at hand. I also don't ascribe to this idea of 'public criticism in the name of correction' which has become the norm here. The aim is to help guide those that are yet to decide whether the MBA is perhaps the right decision or not, now or in the future, as far as, their long term career plans are concerned. We seemed to have scared off people who have genuine questions to ask and need further insights on the subject matter.


Personally, I don't think that an investment in education is a wasted one because ' the moment we stop learning we start dying'. The investment might not pay off immediately or as anticipated but who knows what the future holds in stock? Bear in mind too, that the future is what we make of it NOW! The crux of the matter is for one to get good quality education because, the world as we know it is a global village and competition knows no boundaries. However, 'a good quality education', irrespective of how, we choose to define it , is not a 'one way ticket' for accelerated career progression. It just provides a leeway for the individual to be noticed.


Also, I don't see anything wrong with being a marketing officer with a bank in Lagos after completing a $20,000 MBA. The global economy is still trying to recover from a recession and good jobs are quite hard to come by these days. Frankly speaking, I would prefer to work in 'capacity; as a "marketing officer with a bank in Lagos" rather than, engage in menial jobs abroad ( e.g waiting tables, care work, cleaning of all sorts, security, stacking shelves etc) with the same $20,000 MBA! (recommended topic of discussion for another day!)

Finally , I came across a link on the internet that contains 2011 global MBA rankings published by Financial Times(see enclosed link herewith below). It has an interactive online platform that can enable any user customize the rankings based on specific criteria like number of placements, value for money, employment opportunities. etc. If anybody has further questions and feels that I can be of help, please drop a comment here addressed directly to me and I will be at your service. Otherwise, I am now, a bemused spectator on this thread. Cheers!



P.S- Just an afterthought, I think that the structure this sentence-working as a marketing officer [/b ]with a bank in Lagos after completing, (cited by aribisala0, 2011) is inconsistent because the way the tenses (i.e. working and completing) have been used is incorrect. Remember the old saying about not 'throwing stones' if you live in a glass house?




http://rankings.ft.com/businessschoolrankings/global-mba-rankings-2011

Donmeca:
^^^ @deenee; D approach I used my broda was to identify there was a problem. During the cause of d chat, we (not just me) will state d possible root causes of d problem and then go ahead to proffer solutions for d problem. This I considered ok (and a top to bottom approach) but some users like u, frown at supporting another man's idea (conclusion). . .d innate Naija stubbornness will make u chart what seems to u like a new course while invariably supporting d other man's course and in d end arrive at same destination. Wud u prefer we stopped d talk at d when all agree that privatisation as practised in Nigeria was a failure or when we have identified why it had failed and may be given possible solutions? What verifiable sources do u want and can't get at this point?


I gave Kobo a good answer to d umbrella analogy which she gave 4getin that d man even told me that he used d umbrella very well yet got to my crib wet! Before now, we were told that due process was followed in d sale of those coys. . .is that not akin to judiciously using d umbrella? why did he come home drenched? I also asked about some graduates who were certified by the university only for them to become proven failures in those things they got certifications in.

I like your tenacious attitude. Well just to let you know, I cannot recall stating my opinion on the subject matter (i.e. whether we have gained  or not from the privatization process) I have only expressed some form of satisfaction directly at kobojunkie for the way she has presented her view on the thread.

Anyway, I think this has increased my interest on the subject matter. Hence, I would like both of us to do this

Pick on government agency that has been 'privatized successfully'  and one that has not

Look at the whole process and see if due diligence has been observed during the course of privatization

Identify what has worked and what hasn't, what are the learning points that we all can pick from the exercise? ( yes I mean all of 'us' because the success or failure of our great country Nigeria is a 'collective responsibility' and who  knows maybe one day one of 'us' could be in a position to change things for good)  

Carry out a comparative analysis using another country that has successfully privatized some of her government holdings ( one example I would recommend is Malaysia because the original blueprint for the privatization process model was copied from them)

Apply this analysis within the Nigerian context highlighting the pros and cons and give your take on the matter.

DEAL?

aribisala0:
well the standard of written english /grammar of recent university graduates (going back 20 years) is atrocious and still declining .
even here,on this thread, people are talking of "running an MBA" in blissful ignorance  ,whatever that means. i believe this is not unrelated to a now endemic culture of exam malpractice .i suppose that explains the requirement for TOEFL. of course there's a spectrum of linguistic competence including "proficient ,expert and master users". many nigerian university graduates do not even scale the "proficient" threshold .
it is the case that a graduate of any institution is a "brand representative" and so they protect their brand by enrolling students who will not injure their brand through poor communication skills

Thanks Bro, you have 'just hit the nail on the head' with this comment! I was afraid of saying anything along the lines of what you have said, so that I don't incur the wrath of Nlders and honestly, the standards have dropped. Nice feedback

Donmeca:
That's not d best u can offer here. . .contradicting and shooting myself in d foot on dis topic? Maka why? Unfortunately, u just bothered to post a congratulatory reply to Kobojunkie. . .instead of keeping your cool. All I did was to identify that there was privatisation in Nigeria. That d process was not ideal does not remove d fact that we privatised. I also Identified that Nigeria's version of privatisation failed, or did it succeed? All u can do (if u don't already know) is to ask me how and why it failed or show me how and y u think it a success.  As for d tiltle, that I took a position of its failure does not mean that u cannot think it to be a success. U can show me how. . .so d title stays. U can change it to suit your reasoning in d replies.

Spot on, As you have indicated , I guess I don't have MUCH to offer on the subject matter. So as my Wafi peeps will say -I no fit shout!

Just a quick reminder, when you want to engage in a discourse of any kind and on any topic, you don't start by making a sweeping conclusion on the subject matter at hand(this is akin to putting the 'cart before the horse') This is exactly what you have done(no offence meant please) and by doing this you have reversed the accepted order of things

I recommend you use what is called the top to bottom approach, back up your claims with sources that can be verified, stimulate a well balanced critique of the subject matter and based on this, come to a  logical conclusion. By doing this, at least you  would have done some 'justice' to the subject matter at hand )

tanimola22:
@Deenee

Why did you have to take the TOEFL? Why do some schools in the US require us, Anglo Africans, to take an English language test before we are even considered for admission? Abi our english inferior? Me I don't think so O,

Throw more light, abeg,

This one question, I am afraid I cannot answer. One common thing, though is that quite a handful of schools in the US/Canada include GMAT and TOEFL as part of the admission requirement and this has been the case for several decades.

I also do know that some schools in UK also require some form of assessment to test the English language proficiency of their applicants. On a personal note, I just think that it has to do with setting a standard and it has also been discovered that most find it difficult to catch up or cope when the academic session begins.TOEFL is not that hard , GMAT is quite harder than TOEFL.

BTW many schools, even in the UK have also started to include pre-sessional courses as part of the curricula for their M.Sc students ( esp those in accounting, economics et al. ) A pre-sessional course is an academic teaser that is taught before start of the term which helps students have an overview of the entire course content. This has been the case recently, because quite often, foreign students are in most cases at the 'lower end of the curve' and this teaser tends to help them understand in advance, the learning methods used which I am sure you will quite agree, is a sharp contrast from what obtains in Nigeria

Kobojunkie:
Well, when I say the government has a role to guarantee success . . . I mean government plays a major part in ensuring the success or failure of privatization in the general sense of it. However, AFTERWARDS, it is solely on the companies to work out the rest.

In Nigeria's case, there are countless number of issues to be dealth with. Every small business owner in Nigeria will tell you this is a fact. That some companies have found a way around this . . . either by bribing their way around the problems or finding 'illegal' loopholes to use to their advantage does not in anyway dimish the fact that these issues remain. I think you should make sure to visit your own posts often. When I asked you who many of the companies were sold to. . . you stated that they were mostly sold to 'the highest pocket greaser', many of whom happen to be directly linked to those in government. So, why now are you suggesting that in some way what was practiced is  to be blamed on privatization, when at the end of the day, we all sort of know what happened -- it's in the news that some paid bribes to get this and that, pointing to the fact that there were illegal practices in the process right from the government itself.

Faulting the individuals who bribed their way into obtaining these companies is a whole nother thing but that as well is not a fault on privatization but BAD GOVERNMENT still.

Sure, they will tell you that Nigeria has been living on campus for the past 12 years . . . . . but I am sure every nigerian out there knows that it is not the same as saying that Nigeria has been full-fledged democracy in all that time. Again, we have only recently had an election that even closely mirrored the sentiments of the people. Even a child born two years ago, knows and understands we never even start, especially when you consider what democracy really means. For pete's sake . . .  our last president was a man who no one knew or remembers ever voting for. ROFL

@Kobojunkie, You have just made my day. Like the way you clearly articulated your points from that start, the consistency in flow of thoughts and the presentation of the analogy you have used for this discourse.

Quite often, I bother not to even post a reply because most posters just start threads without any clear evidence to back up their claim whilst contradicting themselves over and over in the process.

God bless you!


P.S On second thoughts, maybe the poster will stop 'shooting himself' in the foot if he edits the topic on this thread and askS a rhetorical question like- WHY HAS PRIVATIZATION NOT WORKED IN THE NIGERIAN CONTEXT?

aribisala0:
many universities offer a straight MBA while others offer specialization . i am a bit sceptical of this specialization since an MBA ,,by definition is a general management degree and i wonder how many modules /hours are spent on this specialist area apart from writing a thesis perhaps

True talk bro, but this only applies to most UK business schools that offer one year courses, with the exception of London business School of course whose MBA is for 21 months.

In the US, the traditional Full time MBA is two full years and the module structure is divided thus; one year for the students to be familiar with the general management modules and in the second year, you concentrate solely on your chosen area of core specialism.

I do agree that even one year is not enough but at least it lays a good foundation and helps to demystify the difficulties that most contemporary managers encounter whilst trying to link 'theory to practice'

bookface:
Wrong.
There's an optimum position on the U curve shaped Weighted Average Cost of Capital that defines a balanced mix of equity and debt.  Read up on Modigliani-Miller Theorem.

@ OP.
Private Equity is all your client needs.  Think of Facebook Inc as an appropriate case study.  And i think you've used the term "valuation" wrongly.  Getting a valuation on your business would not make you lose ownership of your business, it simply gives you an estimate of what your business is worth today in terms of future possible cashflows.


There are several reasons why a company will trade at a 52 week low, for one, it might just be unnecessary market sentiments.  That said, if the company is looking to raise capital, debt markets might be the way to go, given that all over the world, interest rates are testing the lowest levels ever seen and might remain so for a long long time to come.

What do you mean by losing money?  are they making losses or is it the case that they aren't making profits?  they are both two different things.  Either ways, the best valuation for you company will be worth your company is worth, no more, no less.  If you are willing to dispose it, you can sell it off in bits as a poster suggested above, but you must remember that this will generate a liquidity problem and you might be forced to sell them for a very low price than selling the company as a whole.

Certain things don't sell like Akara in the market, you will have to wait for months and in some cases years before you find buyers. Who will be willing to buy an air propeller from you in the next few weeks for the amount that it is actually worth?  answer?  Noone!, well, of course with the exception that you are lucky enough to find people that are desperately in need for an air propeller which only ever happens one in a million cases.   

So what will i do?  Create a spin-off and dump the shares of both companies in the hands of existing shareholders.  You can find out how spin offs and carve outs work and google.

Well said. M and M theory relaxed a lot of assumptions some of which I will outline below-

[list]
[li]The theory assumes that the market  is perfect (in reality, there is no such thing as a perfect market)
It also assumes that there no transaction or bankruptcy costs; firms and individuals can borrow at the same interest rate; no taxes; and investment decisions aren't affected by financing decisions.
There is no asymmetry of information( information asymmetry deals with the study of decisions in transactions where one party has more or better information than the other this is the typical case with the Nigerian capital market , that is why a 'selected minority' always take the majority  of  investing public for a 'joy ride' over and over again!)
[/li]
[li][/li]
[/list]

Of course you will agree with me that all these don't apply in reality. Also there are other propositions put forward by M and M himself like MM II(including taxes), critique by Jensen and Meckling [i]et a[/i]l. So in the real world, there is no clearly defined optimal capital structure for a firm. Even in the graph that you have mentioned ,what is suggested is a range and a stop point. In the real world, the optimal capital structure is determined by the level of expansionary activities or projects funded by the firm. I have only suggested a solution based on the question

Secondly, 'private equity' used here is a generic term because it consist several several asset classes (one common feature with all is that investments are in companies that are not publicly traded on the stock exchange, like the Facebook example cited) These asset classes include but not limited to the following

[list]
[li]Leveraged buyouts- involves the process whereby business assets of a firm is acquired from the current owners typically with the use of financial leverage(also known a DEBT)


Venture capital- broad subcategory of private equity that refers to equity investments made, typically in less mature companies, for the launch, early development, or expansion of a business( used by Facebook and funding provided by a broad range of institutional investors including Goldman Sachs, Nomura holdings (PE arm of Nomura International a leading Japanese bank, Empirica and Black Rock LLP- two hedge fund managers with billions AUM-assets under management

Growth capital- equity investments, most often minority investments, in relatively mature companies that are looking for capital to expand or restructure operations, enter new markets or finance a major acquisition without a change of control of the business

Distressed investments-  can also be known as special situations investments and is  is a broad category referring to investments in equity or debt securities of financially stressed companies.

Mezzanine capital-This form of financing is often used by private equity investors to reduce the amount of equity capital required to finance a leveraged buyout or major expansion.
[/li]
[li][/li]
[/list]
I would be happy if you could tell me which kind of 'private equity' you think would be appropriate to use whilst putting the question in context. Remember the the original poster said that the owner wants  'liquidity' (  firm is not a growth or emerging firm, is not going bankrupt  nor expanding and still wants to maintain control)



For question two, we are on the same page because I have suggested that raising money from the equity market was not the best since the capital required is to fund a project which I presuppose would have a life span. You say that interest rates are quite low now? Are you sure?. Even with the ever occurring debt crisis in the Eurozone (in the  P.I.G.S countries and the recent downgrading of the US credit rating by Standard and Poor? See link below to back up my claim


I agree to an extent  with you answer to question three, for the following reasons creating a 'spin off' will help the firm divest the part of the business that is not making profit (only enriches a few people especially those at the 'top management'), streamline their core operations and concentrate on the 20% that makes 80 % of the profit but also bear in mind that this process is very cumbersome, time consuming and involves money as well.



However, I seriously doubt if a 'carve out' can be applied in this context because in a 'carve out' the firm only sells a minority stake (usually 20% or less) in a subsidiary for an IPO or rights offering. Going by the question, poster asserts the the boat and air division make up about 80% of the business and that the the company is to be sold off at the best price.

P.S I have attached a link here for a PDF document. It is an article  on a M and M and other propositions put forward on the capital structure of the  firm. They have also tested these assumptions  on selected industries and come up with some interesting conclusions and a link to show the recent global bond rates, you can also get up to date info on the rates from Bloomberg or Thomson Reuters website, HAPPY READING


http://markets.ft.com/research/Markets/Bonds

http://www.studyfinance.com/jfsd/pdffiles/v7n3/hatfield.pdf

X-factoria:
Hi deenee,

Thanks for sharing your experience. I am a prospective MBA student and I'm currently working on my applications to some MBA programs in the US. My GMAT score isn't fantastic - I scored 610 and I'm even looking at taking a break from work to attempt it again so maybe I can improve on my score before the first round of application closes in October/November. I have had 5years financial services experience but my undergrad was in engineering.

Please which of the Ivy-League MBA programs did you attend? What was your GMAT score and what did you think help your application stand out? Will appreciate if I get a feedback from you. Thanks.

Thank you, I attended Dartmouth University—Tuck School of Business. The application process is very rigorous and I recall spending about  'eternity'  on mine (you have to apply electronically).


Enclosed with below is a brief outline of the admission requirements-First degree; work experience; GMAT; TOEFL; 2 references; 4 essays; laptop

For the GMAT, 610 is a good start but am afraid you would have to score higher than that to be within a 'reasonable margin of safety'.  There is no cut of for the GMAT score per say. What they do is that, they use what is called a  'cumulative moving average' and use mean of  the lowest and highest range of  scores as the cut off mark. So the cut off  used for a particular year is a reflection of the cumulative GMAT scores for that year(i.e high scores , high cut off and vice versa).

I cannot say if this applies to other schools. You can follow the link posted below if you are interested in first information about the top 100 business schools. Also, I wrote 4 essays and had to send two references(academic and professional). For my GMAT , I scored 675 whilst the average GMAT score for my cohort was 670. I just checked the average GMAT score for my school and it is currently above 700 so it keeps increasing every year!

I am sure there are some equally good schools that will accept slightly lower GMAT scores but as earlier mentioned , I would suggest a high score just to be safe. At this point, let me also note that the GMAT alone is not the only prerequisite used during the selection. I have seen people that had below average GMAT scores  but  with extensive managerial experience and they were accepted. Basically it is more of a 'balancing act' because they treat each application on a case by case basis.

Five years experience in financial services is good start. I only had four before I decided to enroll for the MBA. Your first degree in engineering is also an added advantage because most schools in the USA give preference to applicants that come from a diverse background. In terms of funding, the fees are on the high side when compared to what is obtainable  in the UK but they will give you VALUE FOR MONEY!-no doubt. If you are lucky you can also make some extra money (just to cover living expenses)during the summer holiday working part time but you will not be able to do that when school  is in session.

I also recommend that you look up other funding options available when you have finally decided which school you want to apply to, this will help a lot especially if you are self funded (if you are  lucky, you could get up to 25-50% part funding that will cover tuition fees). Even at that, you might still have to spend a lot because average tuition fees is about $45,000 for most two year full time courses and about $10,000 per year for living expenses.  Hope this helps

Cheers!

www.economist.com/whichmba

Nice thread, MBA schooled with specialism in Finance at a Ivy league business school in the USA,  two very stressful years of my life(emotionally, financially-cost me an arm and a leg and spiritually) but thank God am done with and seriously  reaping the benefits   Presently, I work with PE firm based in New York. Pay is fantastic and work environment, positively challenging(esp. when you are  in the  midst of young upwardly mobile people of the same age, with whom you share similar dreams and aspirations).


On the MBA, most modules were case study based and we had to work interchangeably in  small groups for all modules. We also worked in pairs with a few handful of small businesses and firms on several consultancy projects, designing and implementing business and marketing plans. We had a diverse MBA cohort in my set( 38 students from 40 countries and two from Nigeria-including myself; the  other person, a senior management staff from one Telecoms firms in Nigeria;In fact I think I was the  youngest in my cohort-age wise and in terms of work experience)  Prior , to my MBA, I've had extant exposure for four years as a banker(transaction services) in one of Nigerian new generation Banks that has lots and lots of Orange around it!

During the first year summer break, we had a class trip to Shanghai in China for two weeks  and I also had  brief stint as a volunteer on a sustainable housing project for low income earners in Mexico sponsored by Procter and Gamble. Second year summer break was much more interesting-EURO trip, traveled to France, Brussels, Spain and Portugal. The height of this trip for was my journey through the Euro tunnel( this is an underground rail tunnel that connects Britain to France)

For the internship, I spent three months with GS in New York though in unpaid capacity but I was ready for forgo the remuneration for the exposure on the job and added value on my CV( worked in a team with five other interns in their FICC group-Fixed Income commodities and currency). I didn't work on a dissertation/thesis because , I believe that should be left for those that are interested in a research based masters.The MBA  should enable a potential applicant, have the ability to think with a global mindset so I recommend a summer placement or internship that would give opportunity for exposure.

Finally, one of the prerequisites for the award of the MBA is for students to learn a second foreign language- I picked French and had to spend three contact hours every week for two years with a french tutor at school of foreign languages at my University (My French is a bit rusty now because  I don't speak it quite often but I guess I can still manage with basic exchange of pleasantries). Also we had a range of alumni and networking events which availed existing students the opportunity to meet with school alumni. In fact my current job was secured through one of such events.

I hope to come back home someday-very soon. Still miss the 'hustle and bustle' of Lagos-yes I was not born with a 'silver spoon in my mouth',I be 'Pako' boy to the core, the area boys, the constant drama between bus conductors and passengers and most importantly my family.There is no place  like home!

Cheers!

P.S I had to re post because, my initial post contained a lot of typos and grammatically incorrect sentences which is in my own opinion not 'up to standard'. Also for some reason, I could not modify my original post. I guess the person that started the thread activated some command or something? Well ,if there are any more, please just read in between the lines !

Nice thread, MBA schooled with specialism in Finance at Ivy league business school in the USA, two very stressful years of my life(emotionally, financially-cost me an arm and a leg and spiritually) but thank God am done with and seriously  reaping the benefits   Presently I work with  PE firm based in New York. Pay is fantastic and work environment very challenging9 esp when you are  in the  midst of young upwardly mobile people of the same age and you share similar dreams and aspirations).


On the MBA,most modules were case study based and we had to work  interchangeably in  small groups for all modules. we also worked in pairs with a few handful of small business and firms on several consultancy projects, designing and implementing business and marketing plans  We had a diverse MBA cohort in my set( 38 students from 40 countries and two from Nigeria-including myself; the  other person, a senior management staff  from one Telecoms firms in Nigeria;In fact i think I was the  youngest in my cohort-age wise and in term of work experience) Prior , to my MBA, I've had extant exposure as a banker9 transaction services) in one of Nigerian new generation Banks with lots and lots of Orange around it!

During the first year summer break we had a class trip to Shanghai in China for two weeks  and I also had  brief stint as a volunteer on a sustainable housing project for low income earners in Mexico sponsored by Procter and Gamble. Second year summer break was much more interesting-EURO trip, traveled to France, Brussels, Spain and Portugal. The height of this trip for was my journey through the Euro tunnel( this is an underground rail tunnel that connects Britain to France)

For the internship, I spent three months with GS in New York though in unpaid capacity but I was ready for forgo the remuneration for the exposure on the job and added value on my CV( worked in with a team of five other interns in their FICC group-Fixed Income commodities and currency).I didn't work on a dissertation/thesis because , I believe that should be left for those that are interested in a research based masters.The MBA  should enable a potential applicant, have the ability to think with a global mindset so I recommend  a summer placement or internship that would give opportunity for exposure.

Finally, one of the prerequisites for the award of the MBA is for students to learn a second foreign language- I picked French and had to spend three contact hours every week for two years with a french tutor at school of foreign languages at my University( My French is very rusty now because  I don't speak it  quite often but I guess I can still mange with basis exchanges  of pleasantries). Also we had a range of alumni  and networking events which availed existing students the opportunity to meet with school alumni. In fact my current job was secured through one of such events.

I hope to come back home someday-very soon. Still miss the 'hustle and bustle' of Lagos-yes I was not born with a 'silver spoon in my mouth',I be 'Pako' boy to the core, the area boys, the constant drama between bus conductors and passengers and most importantly my family.There is no place  like home!

Cheers!

Hello,
This name looks familiar? I think we have met on a different thread on this domain (can’t really remember which)

Anyway, the questions you have put forward, are quite ambiguous  because, it will be difficult to give a well balanced investment opinion with the  information provided herein.( No projections or financials et.al)

In this regard, I will assume that the intended outcome is just to have a general understanding of the topic at hand and how theory can be applied to practice. 


Before I present my own take on the topic, there are some certain assumptions I will like to put forward-

PECKING ORDER THEORY-This is used the explain the preference for a particular type of capital structure used by the firm.The theory states states that companies prioritize their sources of financing (from internal financing to equity) according to the Principle of least effort, or of least resistance, preferring to raise equity as a financing means of last resort. Hence, internal funds are used first, and when that is depleted, debt is issued, and when it is not sensible to issue any more debt, equity is issued.

Question One- This is plain simple. Tell the owner to issue and include some debt in the capital structure of the firm. Since the owner still wants to retain some form  of ownership, it is advised that the debt to equity ratio (the debt-to-equity ratio (D/E) is a financial ratio indicating the relative proportion of shareholders' equity and debt used to finance a company's assets) should be more of equity than debt so that the owner can still have a say in the day to day operations of the business. There is no generally accepted range for the debt to equity ratio but since the owners want to remain at the ‘helm of affairs’ whilst having liquidity, I would suggest a maximum range of not more than of 49 to 51(i.e. 49% debt and 51% equity) This is based on your assertion that  the firm is solely owned. It could be 30 to 70,40 to 60 but should not exceed the  limit set above.

However, raising debt can also have it own demerits. This is because, debt holders are entitled to constant interest payments on the debt originated via semi or annual coupon payments but  debt holders, to a large extent do not influence or have a say in the daily operations of the business. Also if the debt is a convertible debt(can be converted to equity) which is usually for high risk transactions or for firms facing financial distress, they could appoint a member to sit on the board of the company in question to act as a check.


Question Two-Personally, I would ask probe further in this case.
What are the management predictions/projections? Is it, likely to exceed that of the previous financial year? What kind of project do they need funding for , what is the investment horizon or time frame for the project to be completed, what are the estimated future cash flows for the project in question?

Anyway the firm needs to identify that source of funding according to the  principle of least effort mentioned above. Since the company is trading at a 52 week low( a market indicator used to measure the trading patterns of publicly quoted and actively traded companies on the stock exchange for a period usually one year i.e 52 weeks).

As the stock is trading at a 52 week low, this implies that it’s market value is below its intrinsic value( i.e discounted price) and perhaps raising money from the equity market will not be the best for them at the moment. This is because they will be giving away their stock away at a low price using the existing market price as a base for setting the offer price for the  proposed seasoned offering.


Question Three- There some vital points to be raised here.
Does your client intend to sell the company as a holding entity or sell in parts through asset stripping? Asset stripping is the process of buying an undervalued company with the intent to sell off its assets for a profit. The individual assets of the company, such as its equipment and property, may be more valuable than the company as a whole due to such factors as poor management or poor economic conditions.

For example, imagine that a company has three distinct businesses: A, B and C. If the value of the company is currently 100 million but another company believes that it can sell each of its three businesses to other companies for 50 million each, an asset stripping opportunity exists. The purchasing company will then purchase the three-business company for 100 million and sell each company off, potentially making 50 million.(By buying the comapny as a whole for 100 million and selling them in parts for 50 million each!)

Personally, I would sell off the boat and air division since there not turning in a profit and invest in the windmill propellers division. This will help increase the appraisal that the firm will get during the  valuation process  for the final sell –off and also increase profit margins at the end of the day.

P.S-Please,don’t mind the typos in my response and I hope this helps or at least gives you some form of guidance? Yes, I remember now, you wanted to know more about career opportunities in Private Equity/Venture Capital on a thread about one MD ‘cursing’ non performers in his bank.

carla2009:
This is to all of you in this forum. Obasanjo is the best President Nigeria has ever had. If you know all that is involved in being President in Nigeria, then you would appreciate Baba. Unfortunately, Baba would have to die before many of you would open up your minds to see the guy as a selfless unifying leader. His enemies are very powerful and do not sleep at all. They make up, spread and manipulate information to make him look like a villain using all the mainstream news media to do their dirty job. No wonder National mirror is reaching out to him to tell his own story.

For example, how many of you knew that the power stations that was supposed to give Nigeria 5000MW was 75% complete and all Yar'Adua had to do was to disburse the last tranche of funds? Well it is true. YarAdua and his goons decided to cancel the works and probe the contracts thereby loosing money. It is the same work that was suspended that we are now picking up again and thus paying additional money to revive. I leave you all with your consciences each time you join the let us bash Baba frenzy.

SPOT ON!, I am always amazed when Nlders (not making a sweeping generalization here) just make comments filled with bias. OBJ is perhaps the best leader we' ve had in years. People condemn him but lets be quite frank what exactly did Yar' Adua accomplish whilst in power ? He was the one that truncated the power station projects be refusing to disburse the last tranche of funds. I agree that his methods are quite crude but you need to be a have that kind of leadership trait to rule Nigeria. The same people are also complaining that GEJ is too soft.

There is nothing wrong in him been a columnist. In the developed economies, former gang leaders, drug lords and ousted dictators write books and even host documentaries. Nobody is forcing you to read his column.

As per the third term debacle. It still beats me that people are still asking for Baba's head for a proposal that would have helped us grow as a nation in the long run whilst a particular section of the country feels that it is their right to rule Nigeria for life!

God bless Nigeria!


IT IS ONLY WHEN WE FORGET ALL OUR LEARNING THAT WE BEGIN TO KNOW!

'Hustling', this is an ambiguous term. For sure depending on a monthly wage is the worst addiction anyone can have. Far worst than being hooked on controlled substances but then let;s not get carried away with the grass will be 'greener'  on the  other side story and advise him to take that leap of faith without some thought.

He has to consider his wife and kid. If he is still single then he can take such risk but with a family, such life changing decisions have to be taken with cautious optimism.

First and foremost, what does he intend to do if he resigns on the 27th? He should have a mind map of what he wants to do in 'hustling' terms  and also plans on paper to get this done. If not he should just stay put at his job and sort this  out first

As earlier indicated, he still needs to learn financial discipline either way. BEST OF LUCK!

jerryben12:
Tell him to cut his coat according his size!!!! These are my advise my humble friend. Pass this on to him. He can still put some money in his savings to retire early and pursue whatever he wants to.

1. His rent is about 27k/month - Move to a cheaper house and pay 13.5k/month

2. He allocate 15/month for his son upkeep - What does his wife do? engage your wife more and reduce the upkeep to 7.5k/month

3. [s]He wife take 30k to the market every first week[/s]. - She can N15k every first week or buy food in bulk and save. Elimate transport cost to the market

4. [s]He spend approximately 30k in expense to work (transport + Lunch)[/s] - Reduce this to N18k/month but going brown (take lunch from home to work)

5. [s]Pays light bill 3k ie 'Unavailable electricity'[/s] - Reduce this to N2k by changing to energy saving bulbs. Also turn of lights where you are not in that space

6. [s]Buy gas of 10k before the months end. (car + generator)[/s] - Look for a church close to your house to reduce gas and reduce your generator run time by 2 hours a day and save N4K

7. Shayo like 3 to 5k/month(weekends) - You can still shayo with N2.5K by reducing the quantity

8. [s]Buy recharged card, hair cut, toiletries + family wahala.[/s] - Call less on the phone, buy your own clipper, use water to clean your Bottom instead of tissue paper. Give when it is necessary to families.

Guy you harsh small, but nice and sincere comment.Let's just hope this will serve as a rude awakening call for him

P.S you just remind me of how Popsie dey 'cross out 'my list when I am returning to boarding school, eye go dey RED! 

Parkinson’s Law, (not to be confused with Parkinson’s disease), is a law that states "as the supply of a resource increases, so does the demand of that same resource". I’m going to change that a little and add just a few more words to come up the definition we will be using throughout this article. Parkinson’s Law (as it pertains to this article): As income rises, expenses rise in greater proportion.

What does that mean in plain English? The more dough you get, the more you’ll spend, and the worse off you will be. You’ll probably end up poorer than before. If you’ve got more cash coming in, how can I be poorer you ask?
Let’s say Joe Blow made $35,000 a year. Due to his hard work, he is now earning $50,000 a year. A substantial increase in cash flow. What does he do?

He sells his Honda Civic and buys a brand new Acura. Now he has monthly payments. His insurance is probably higher now that he has a nicer car. He also probably has to put premium gas in his car instead of unleaded in his Civic. He goes out more often, upping his gas bill even higher. His lifestyle starts to change. He eats at trendy restaurants, goes to trendy bars, drops wads of cash on tips and alcohol.

Whips out his credit card to buy that laptop he always wanted and that big screen TV as well.
Then he goes to his ATM and checks the balance on his account. It seems low. He’s confused. He just got a pay raise. How can it be that low? He gets his credit card statement in the mail. It has increased by 50%. He always seems to be short on cash. What's going on?


Joe Blow succumbed to Parkinson’s law.
And without any statistics to back me up, I can safely say that a vast majority succumb to Parkinson’s law everyday. I’m sure every reader here knows somebody who is a perfect example of Joe Blow. And the sad thing is that people who succumb to Parkinson’s law are worse off, not only financially, but mentally and emotionally as well.
It’s time to violate Parkinson’s law. How can we do that? Here are a couple of ways in no particular order.

Pay Yourself First
Frankly speaking, you should be doing this regardless of whether you have had an increase in income or not. Let’s say you earn $3,000 a month. The rule of thumb is to pay yourself 10% first, which comes out to $300. If your income rises to $4,000 a month, try paying yourself more than the 10%. Why? Because chances are, your expenses will rise proportionality greater than your income, so try to save a little more to offset that. Try saving (15%) $600 a month.

What this will do is build you a nice cushion in your savings account and it will force you to only deal with what you have left in your checking account. When you have only X amount of dollars to work with, you WILL figure out a way to work with it. In order to do this, I suggest you sign up for a bank that will automatically deduct a certain amount from your checking account each month. That way, you set it and forget it. You won’t even know it’s gone. Then one day, you can log in to your savings account and pat yourself on the back for all the money you’ve saved.

Be Thankful
Another way to violate Parkinson’s law is to be thankful for what you have. By being thankful for what you have, you’ll feel abundant and won’t be so eager to spend because you already have what you want. By doing so, you won’t fall into the trap of “I’ll be happy when I get that ________(fill in the blank: car, computer, clothes, gadget, etc).
Yes, it’s cliché, but have you really sat down and realized how much you have? You have the eyes to read this article, a computer with Internet access to get to it, schooling to read and understand it, etc. You’re better off than you give yourself credit for.

Think of ALL the Hidden Costs Associated With Your Future Purchases
Like the example of the new car, try to think of ALL the hidden costs associated with any purchase you may make with your newfound income. You may not think of any at first, but just stay with the question a little longer and you will realize that it will cost you more than you thought.
Remind Yourself of Your Toys
Remember when you were young and you were begging your parents for that hot new toy on the market and that if they bought it for you, you wouldn’t ask for anything else? You nagged and nagged and nagged until they finally caved and bought you the toy. What happened? You were overjoyed and played with it for a week. After the week, you tossed it in the back of your closet with your other previous "must have" toys.
The point I want to make is that you may want to buy something you really want with your increased income, but have the foresight that it may and probably will, only bring you momentary pleasure.
Cash Out Your Spending Money for the Month
I’m assuming you track all your expenses for the month. If not, then please set up a simple budget in Excel. List all your expenses for the month. Then go to the ATM and cash out all you will need for the month to cover lunch, dinner, weekend, entertainment expenses, etc. Then, only use the cash you have to pay those expenses. Don’t cash out money for bills. Keep that separate, and if possible automate the payment of your bills online to make it easier on yourself.

Here’s another quick budgeting tip. When you list your expenses in Column A, list in the next column whether the expense is a Necessity or Want. You can further violate Parkinson’s law by reducing or eliminating any expenses that are categorized as “Want”.

Ask Yourself: Do I Really Need This?
Before your purchase something, ask yourself: “Do I Really Need This?” If so, then why? If you can list 7 solid reasons why, then wait one week and then if you still decide you need it, then go ahead and buy it.
We often want things, but the results will most likely be just like the toys we always wanted when we were young.

Don’t Compare Yourself With Others
This is also known as “Don’t try to keep up with the neighbors”. You may feel the urge to go buy that new car or computer, or a new wardrobe to keep up with your friends who do the same and appear financially successful, but keep in mind that those friends you are trying to “keep up” with are most likely succumbing to Parkinson’s law. You, however are smarter than that.
It’s OK to Splurge (a little)
I don’t want to give off the impression that you absolutely cannot buy the things you want when you get more cash. By all means, reward yourself but be aware of Parkinson’s law, pay yourself first, and apply the tips listed here before you do so.
Self Control and Discipline
By violating Parkinson’s law, you automatically build self control and discipline, which are two very valuable investments on your part. Not many people have the self control and discipline to violate Parkinson’s law.

What your friend needs is 'financial discipline', have you heard of Parkinson's law?(not to be confused with Parkinson's disease)
Simply put, the law states that "as the supply of a resource increases, so does the demand of that same resource". I’m going to change that a little and add just a few more words to come up with my own definition-As income rises, expenses rise in greater proportion.

It is quite funny that you friend has not 'paid himself first' and seems to be working for others.I am also still in 'awe' that all he has, are liabilities on his balance sheet and no assets

No matter the amount of money he makes, if he does not have the clout to discipline himself financially then he will be akin to someone running on 'tread mill'-moving but going nowhere.

Looking at his monthly expenses, there is no  provision for investments of any sort. If he has  investments that bring in extra cash for him, he can live his life without fear of uncertainty.

One particular thing that I like about Nigeria is the diverse opportunities for investment. I can give you examples of several low budget investments that can serve as additional sources of income for him.

He can set up viewing center and bar where people can come a watch football matches and drink-extra income and free shayo since na [b][b]shayo master[/b][/b]!
He can open a hair salon-extra income(free haircuts there too)
He can have a shop to sell recharge cards in bulk-extra income- and to think that I am not even in Naija!

On a personal note, I have some questions I want to ask-

Must his wife spend 30k on food every month? Thought he has only one child?
Must he drink every weekend?
Why spend 30k on lunch at work when your wife can cook for you (abi e dey shame to carry food for 'flask' go work?)

Well if your friend thinks 'hustling' will help him solve his financial problems, then I WISH HIM THE BEST OF LUCK!

P.S-those who have heads have no cap, those that have cap have no heads-irony of life!

Trust the media and their 'sensational journalism'
Anyway if he is found guilty, he should pay the price, 'he who lives in a glass house should not throw stones'!

It depends on your course of study and requirements for the job opening. There are some jobs that would require that you have a certain level of competency in a particular area of expertise. Hence, the only proof might be your actual scores in modules specific to that competency ( this is true for entry level interns in finance and engineering esp those without experience or internships)

However as you climb the  ladder, there is less emphasis on this and a shift to the relevant diversity of experience in your career,your performance till date and other acquisition of 'soft skills' like networking et al.,( I guess one NLder already posted something similar along this line)

We also need to be very careful so that  we don't lose sight of the main objective whilst making the selection during a recruitment process. I have seen first class graduates who have brilliant grades but yet cannot deliver on the job and are still basking in the euphoria of their 'academic achievement'. In the real world, it goes beyond this. Also this does not mean that generalizing assumptions should be made based on one peculiar encounter.

My personal take on this matter is this-get the best grades you can get in school but also develop other skills required to excel career wise and the sky is just the beginning

BTW, I would prefer to hire a graduate with below average grades who is 'STREET SMART and 'LOYAL' than a first class who cannot look beyond his past academic qualifications on paper!