Banks of India and Bank

Project Report On CUSTOMER SATISFACTION CORPORATE GUIDE FACULTY GUIDE Mr. Ravi Parmar Mr. Rajnish mallick Relationship Manager Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the requirement of Post Graduate Diploma in management Submitted By Ankur Singh PGDM-III, Semester Batch- 2008-10 Roll no. 014908005 Centre for Management Technology Knowledge Park I Gr. Noida AcknowledgementsIf words are considered to be signs of gratitude then let these words Convey the very same My sincere gratitude to ICICI BANK for providing me with an opportunity to work with BANK and giving necessary directions on doing this project to the best of my abilities. I am highly indebted to Mr. Remay Verma, Branch Manager and Mr. Ravi Parmar (RM) company project guide, who has provided me with the necessary information and also for the support extended out to me in the completion of this report and his valuable suggestion and comments on bringing out this report in the best way possible. I also thank Prof.Anant Jyoti,(HO D of PGDM), who has sincerely supported me with the valuable insights into the completion of this project. I am grateful to all faculty members of C-Mat and my friends who have helped me in the successful completion of this project. | CONTENTS| | Sr. No. | Subject Covered| Page No. | 1| Acknowledgements| 2| 2| Executive Summary| 4| 3| My Project Objective| 7| 4| Banking Structure in India| 8| 5| Introduction| 9| 6| History of Banking in India| 10| 7| Bank In India| 17| 8| Fact Files of Banks in India| 19| 9| Indian Banking Industries| 26| 10| ICICI Bank | 28| 11| ICICI Group | 33| 2| Technology used in ICICI Bank| 39| 13| Product and Customer segments | 41| 11| Product| 44| 14| SWOT Analysis | 55| 15| Research Methodology| 57| 16| Company Efforts To Ensure Customer Satisfaction | 59| 17| Data Analysis | 69| 18| Comparison With SBI| 79| 19| SWOT Analysis(comparative)| 87| 20 | Questionnaire | 93| 21| Finding | 98| 22 | Suggestion | 99| 23 | Conclusion| 102| 24| Bibliography| 103| | E XECUTIVE SUMMARY Private banking is a concept which is new and fast emerging in the world of banking where changes have become a necessity in order for banks to survive n this competitive environment vis-a-vis not only from the public and private sector banks but also from the foreign banks. The objective of the research is to explore the various products, which a private banker deals into and the systematic process involved to match client requirements with the right kind of product. Through this research one of the main objectives is to explore the reason why most of the banks are injecting private banking as business profile to their set of service offerings. Though private banking evolved in late 80’s in Asia, in India its not more than 5 years old.ICICI started it in Aug 2002 and since then it has been a remarkable success. Today there are enormous solutions to cater client needs but what suits best to a client is where private banking fits in. Every client will have dif ferent needs, liking and preferences. So a customized portfolio for every client is the need of the day. This research will highlight more on the product portfolio of ICICI Private Banking, how they have changed or innovatively structured to be attractive and competitive. Research objective 1. To draw the comparative analysis of ICICI BANK Ltd with SBI etc. 2.To identify the major attributes of customer satisfaction. 3. To study customer perception about ICICI BANK Ltd. 4. To identify and study the various ways of ensuring customer satisfaction adopted by ICICI BANK Vs HDFC & SBI. ————————————————- BANKING STRUCTURE IN INDIA Scheduled Banks in India (A) Scheduled Commercial Banks Public sector Banks| Private sector Banks| Foreign Banks in India| Regional Rural Bank| (28)| (27)| (29)| (102)| * Nationalized Bank * Other Public Sector Banks (IDBI) * SBI and its Associates| * Old Private Banks * New Private Banks| | | B) Scheduled Cooperative Banks Scheduled Urban Cooperative Banks (55)| Scheduled State Cooperative Banks (31)| Here we more concerned about private sector banks and competition among them. Today, there are 27 private sector banks in the banking sector: 19 old private sector banks and 8 new private sector banks. These new banks have brought in state-of-the-art technology and aggressively marketed their products. The Public sector banks are facing a stiff competition from the new private sector banks.The banks which have been setup in the 1990s under the guidelines of the Narasimham Committee are referred to as NEW PRIVATE SECTOR BANKS. introduction The banking section will navigate through all the aspects of the Banking System in India. It will discuss upon the matters with the birth of the banking concept in the country to new players adding their names in the industry in coming few years. The banker of all banks, Reserve Bank of India (RBI ), the Indian Banks Association (IBA) and top 20 banks like IDBI, HSBC, ICICI, ABN AMRO, etc. as been well defined under three separate heads with one page dedicated to each bank. However, in the introduction part of the entire banking cosmos, the past has been well explained under three different heads namely: * History of Banking in India * Nationalization of Banks in India * Scheduled Commercial Banks in India The first deals with the history part since the dawn of banking system in India. Government took major step in the 1969 to put the banking sector into systems and it nationalized 14 private banks in the mentioned year. This has been elaborated in Nationalization Banks in India.The last but not the least explains about the scheduled and unscheduled banks in India. Section 42 (6) (a) of RBI Act 1934 lays down the condition of scheduled commercial banks. The descriptions along with a list of scheduled commercial banks are given on this page. * HISTORY OF BANKING IN INDIA Witho ut a sound and effective banking system in India it cannot have a healthy economy. The banking system of India should not only be hassle free but it should be able to meet new challenges posed by the technology and any other external and internal factors.For the past three decades India's banking system has several outstanding achievements to its credit. The most striking is its extensive reach. It is no longer confined to only metropolitans or cosmopolitans in India. In fact, Indian banking system has reached even to the remote corners of the country. This is one of the main reasons of India's growth process. The government's regular policy for Indian bank since 1969 has paid rich dividends with the nationalization of 14 major private banks of India.Not long ago, an account holder had to wait for hours at the bank counters for getting a draft or for withdrawing his own money. Today, he has a choice. Gone are days when the most efficient bank transferred money from one branch to oth er in two days. Now it is simple as instant messaging or dial a pizza. Money have become the order of the day. The first bank in India, though conservative, was established in 1786. From 1786 till today, the journey of Indian Banking System can be segregated into three distinct phases. They are as mentioned below: * Early phase from 1786 to 1969 of Indian Banks Nationalization of Indian Banks and up to 1991 prior to Indian banking sector Reforms. * New phase of Indian Banking System with the advent of Indian Financial ; Banking Sector Reforms after 1991. To make this write-up more explanatory, I prefix the scenario as Phase I, Phase II and Phase III. Phase I The General Bank of India was set up in the year 1786. Next came Bank of Hindustan and Bengal Bank. The East India Company established Bank of Bengal (1809), Bank of Bombay (1840) and Bank of Madras (1843) as independent units and called it Presidency Banks.These three banks were amalgamated in 1920 and Imperial Bank of India wa s established which started as private shareholders banks, mostly Europeans shareholders. In 1865 Allahabad Bank was established and first time exclusively by Indians, Punjab National Bank Ltd. was set up in 1894 with headquarters at Lahore. Between 1906 and 1913, Bank of India, Central Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, Indian Bank, and Bank of Mysore were set up. Reserve Bank of India came in 1935. During the first phase the growth was very slow and banks also experienced periodic failures between 1913 and 1948.There were approximately 1100 banks, mostly small. To streamline the functioning and activities of commercial banks, the Government of India came up with The Banking Companies Act, 1949 which was later changed to Banking Regulation Act 1949 as per amending Act of 1965 (Act No. 23 of 1965). Reserve Bank of India was vested with extensive powers for the supervision of banking in India as the Central Banking Authority. During those day’s public has lesser confi dence in the banks. As an aftermath deposit mobilization was slow. Abreast of it the savings bank facility provided by the Postal department was comparatively safer.Moreover, funds were largely given to traders. Phase II Government took major steps in this Indian Banking Sector Reform after independence. In 1955, it nationalized Imperial Bank of India with extensive banking facilities on a large scale especially in rural and semi-urban areas. It formed State Bank of India to act as the principal agent of RBI and to handle banking transactions of the Union and State Governments all over the country. Seven banks forming subsidiary of State Bank of India was nationalized in 1960 on 19th July, 1969, major process of nationalization was carried out.It was the effort of the then Prime Minister of India, Mrs. Indira Gandhi. 14 major commercial banks in the country was nationalized. Second phase of nationalization Indian Banking Sector Reform was carried out in 1980 with seven more banks. T his step brought 80% of the banking segment in India under Government ownership. The following are the steps taken by the Government of India to Regulate Banking Institutions in the Country: * 1949: Enactment of Banking Regulation Act. * 1955: Nationalization of State Bank of India. * 1959: Nationalization of SBI subsidiaries. 1961: Insurance cover extended to deposits. * 1969: Nationalization of 14 major banks. * 1971: Creation of credit guarantee corporation. * 1975: Creation of regional rural banks. * 1980: Nationalization of seven banks with deposits over 200 crore. After the nationalization of banks, the branches of the public sector bank India rose to approximately 800% in deposits and advances took a huge jump by 11,000%. Banking in the sunshine of Government ownership gave the public implicit faith and immense confidence about the sustainability of these institutions. Phase IIIThis phase has introduced many more products and facilities in the banking sector in its reforms me asure. In 1991, under the chairmanship of M Narasimham, a committee was set up by his name which worked for the liberalization of banking practices. The country is flooded with foreign banks and their ATM stations. Efforts are being put to give a satisfactory service to customers. Phone banking and net banking is introduced. The entire system became more convenient and swift. Time is given more importance than money. The financial system of India has shown a great deal of resilience.It is sheltered from any crisis triggered by any external macroeconomics shock as other East Asian Countries suffered. This is all due to a flexible exchange rate regime, the foreign reserves are high, the capital account is not yet fully convertible, and banks and their customers have limited foreign exchange exposure. BANKS IN INDIA In India the banks are being segregated in different groups. Each group has their own benefits and limitations in operating in India. Each has their own dedicated target ma rket. Few of them only work in rural sector while others in both rural as well as urban.Many even are only catering in cities. Some are of Indian origin and some are foreign players. All these details and many more is discussed over here. The banks and its relation with the customers, their mode of operation, the names of banks under different groups and other such useful information’s are talked about. One more section has been taken note of is the upcoming foreign banks in India. The RBI has shown certain interest to involve more of foreign banks than the existing one recently. This step has paved a way for few more foreign banks to start business in India. Major Banks in India| ABN-AMRO Bank * Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank * American Express Bank * Andhra Bank * Allahabad Bank * Bank of Baroda * Bank of India * Bank of Maharastra * Bank of Punjab * Bank of Rajasthan * Bank of Ceylon * BNP Paribas Bank * Canara Bank * Catholic Syrian Bank * Central Bank of India * Centurion Ban k * China Trust Commercial Bank * Citi Bank * City Union Bank * Corporation Bank * Dena Bank * Deutsche Bank * Development Credit Bank * Dhanalakshmi Bank * Federal Bank * HDFC Bank * HSBC ICICI Bank * IDBI Bank * Indian Bank | * Indian Overseas Bank * IndusInd Bank * ING Vysya Bank * Jammu ; Kashmir Bank * JPMorgan Chase Bank * Karnataka Bank * Karur Vysya Bank * Laxmi Vilas Bank * Oriental Bank of Commerce * Punjab National Bank * Punjab ; Sind Bank * Scotia Bank * South Indian Bank * Standard Chartered Bank * State Bank of India (SBI) * State Bank of Bikaner ; Jaipur * State Bank of Hyderabad * State Bank of Indore * State Bank of Mysore * State Bank of Saurastra * State Bank of Travancore * Syndicate Bank * Taib Bank * UCO Bank * Union Bank of India * United Bank of India * United Bank Of India * United Western Bank * UTI Bank | Fact Files of Banks in India The first, the oldest, the largest, the biggest, get all such types of information’s about Banking in India in this section. The first bank in India to be given an ISO Certification| Canara Bank| The first bank in Northern India to get ISO 9002 certification for their selected branches| Punjab and Sind Bank| The first Indian bank to have been started solely with Indian capital| Punjab National Bank| The first among the private sector banks in Kerala to become a scheduled bank in 1946 under the RBIAct| South Indian Bank| India's oldest, largest and most successful commercial bank, offering the widest possible range of domestic, international and NRI products and services, through its vast network in India and overseas| State Bank of India| India's second largest private sector bank and is now the largest scheduled commercial bank in India| The Federal Bank Limited| Bank which started as private shareholders banks, mostly Europeans shareholders| Imperial Bank of India| The first Indian bank to open a branch outside India in London in 1946 and the first to open a branch in continental Europe at Pari s in 1974| Bank of India, founded in 1906 in Mumbai| The oldest Public Sector Bank in India having branches all over India and serving the customers for the last 132 years| Allahabad Bank| The first Indian commercial bank which was wholly owned and managed by Indians| Central Bank of India| | | Bank of India was founded in 1906 in Mumbai. It became the first Indian bank to open a branch outside India in London in 1946 and the first to open a branch in continental Europe at Paris in 1974. PUBLIC SECTOR BANKS Among the Public Sector Banks in India, United Bank of India is one of the 14 major banks, which were nationalized on July 19, 1969. Its predecessor, in the Public Sector Banks, the United Bank of India Ltd. , was formed in 1950 with the amalgamation of four banks viz. Camilla Banking Corporation Ltd. (1914), Bengal Central Bank Ltd. (1918), Camilla Union Bank Ltd. (1922) and Hooghly Bank Ltd. (1932).Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC), Government of India Undertaking offers Domestic , NRI and Commercial banking services. OBC is implementing a GRAMEEN PROJECT in Dehradun District (UP) and Hanumangarh District (Rajasthan) disbursing small loans. This Public Sector Bank India has implemented 14 point action plan for strengthening of credit delivery to women and has designated 5 branches as specialized branches for women entrepreneurs. The following are the list of Public Sector Banks in India * Allahabad Bank * Andhra Bank * Bank of Baroda * Bank of India * Bank of Maharastra * Canara Bank * Central Bank of India * Corporation Bank * Dena Bank * Indian Bank * Indian Overseas Bank * Oriental Bank of Commerce Punjab ; Sind Bank * Punjab National Bank * Syndicate Bank * UCO Bank * Union Bank of India * United Bank of India * Vijaya Bank List of State Bank of India and its subsidiary, a Public Sector Banks * State Bank of India * State Bank of Bikaner ; Jaipur * State Bank of Hyderabad * State Bank of Indore * State Bank of Mysore * State Bank of Saurastra * State Ban k of Travancore PRIVATE SECTOR BANKS: Private banking in India was practiced since the beginning of banking system in India. The first private bank in India to be set up in Private Sector Banks in India was IndusInd Bank. It is one of the fastest growing Bank Private Sector Banks in India.IDBI ranks the tenth largest development bank in the world as Private Banks in India and has promoted world class institutions in India. The first Private Bank in India to receive an in principle approval from the Reserve Bank of India was Housing Development Finance Corporation Limited, to set up a bank in the private sector banks in India as part of the RBI's liberalization of the Indian Banking Industry. It was incorporated in August 1994 as HDFC Bank Limited with registered office in Mumbai and commenced operations as Scheduled Commercial Bank in January 1995. ING Vysya, yet another Private Bank of India was incorporated in the year 1930. Bangalore has a pride of place for having the first bran ch inception in the year 1934.With successive years of patronage and constantly setting new standards in banking, ING Vysya Bank has many credits to its account. List of Private Banks in India * Bank of Punjab * Bank of Rajasthan * Catholic Syrian Bank * Centurion Bank * City Union Bank * Dhanalakshmi Bank * Development Credit Bank * Federal Bank * HDFC Bank * ICICI Bank * IDBI Bank * IndusInd Bank * ING Vysya Bank * Jammu & Kashmir Bank * Karnataka Bank * Karur Vysya Bank * Laxmi Vilas Bank * South Indian Bank * United Western Bank INDIAN BANKING INDUSTRY The Indian banking market is growing at an astonishing rate, with Assets expected to reach US$1 trillion by 2010.An expanding economy, middle class, and technological innovations are all contributing to this growth. The country’s middle class accounts for over 320 million People. In correlation with the growth of the economy, rising income levels, increased standard of living, and affordability of banking products are promi sing factors for continued expansion. The Indian banking market is growing at an astonishing rate, with Assets expected to reach US$1 trillion by 2010. An expanding economy, middle class, and technological innovations are all contributing to this growth. The Indian banking Industry is in the middle of an IT revolution, Focusing on the expansion of retail and rural banking.Players are becoming increasingly customer – centric in their approach, which has resulted in innovative methods of offering new banking products and services. Banks are now realizing the importance of being a big player and are beginning to focus their attention on mergers and acquisitions to take advantage of economies of scale and/or comply with Basel II regulation. â€Å"Indian banking industry assets are expected to reach US$1 trillion by 2010 and are poised to receive a greater infusion of foreign capital,† says Prathima Rajan, analyst in Celent's banking group and author of the report. â€Å"T he banking industry should focus on having a small number of large players that can compete globally rather than having a large number of fragmented players. † | |Type| Private, BSE & NSE, NYSE| Founded| 1955 (as Industrial credit and Investment corporation of India)| Headquarters| ICICI Bank Ltd. , ICICI Bank Towers, Bandra Kurla Mumbai, India| Key people| N Vaghul, K. V. Kamath, Chanda Kochhar, V Vaidyanathan, Madhabi Puri | Industry| Banking Insurance Capital Markets and allied industries| Products| Loans, Credit Cards, Savings, Investment vehicles, Insurance etc. | Revenue| ^ USD 5. 79 billion| Total assets| Rs. 3,997. 95 billion (US$ 100 billion) at March 31, 2008. | Overview ICICI Bank (formerly Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India).ICICI Limited was established in 1955 by the World Bank, the Government of India and the Indian Industry, for the promotion of industrial development in India by giving project and corporate finance to the industries in India . ICICI Bank has grown from a development bank to a financial conglomerate and has become one of the largest public financial institutions in India. ICICI Bank has financed all the major sectors of the economy, covering 6,848 companies and 16,851 projects. As of March 31, 2000, ICICI had disbursed a total of Rs. 1,13,070 crores, since inception. ICICI Bank Fact Files: Total assets: Rs. 146,214 crore (December 31, 2004) Network: 530 branches ATMs: Over 1,880 Abroad Subsidiaries: United Kingdom and Canada Abroad branches: Singapore and Bahrain Representative offices: United States, China, United Arab Emirates, and Bangladesh and South Africa.ICICI Bank is India's second-largest bank with total assets of about Rs. 2,513. 89 bn (US$ 56. 3 bn) at March 31, 2006 and profit after tax of Rs. 25. 40 bn (US$ 569 mn) for the year ended March 31, 2006 (Rs. 20. 05 bn (US$ 449 mn) for the year ended March 31, 2005). ICICI Bank has a network of about 614 branches and extension counters and over 2, 200 ATMs. ICICI Bank offers a wide range of banking products and financial services to corporate and retail customers through a variety of delivery channels and through its specialized subsidiaries and affiliates in the areas of investment banking, life and non-life insurance, venture capital and asset management.ICICI Bank set up its international banking group in fiscal 2002 to cater to the cross border needs of clients and leverage on its domestic banking strengths to offer products internationally. ICICI Bank (BSE: ICICI) ( Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India) is India's largest private sector bank in market capitalization and second largest overall in terms of assets. Bank has total assets of about USD 100 billion (at the end of March 2008), a network of over 1,491 branches, 22 regional offices and 49 regional processing centers, about 4,485 ATMs (at the end of September 2008), and 24 million customers (at the end of July 2007).ICICI Bank offers a wide range o f banking products and financial services to corporate and retail customers through a variety of delivery channels and specialized subsidiaries and affiliates in the areas of investment banking, life and non-life insurance, venture capital and asset management. (These data are dynamic. ) ICICI Bank is also the largest issuer of credit cards in India. ICICI Bank has got its equity shares listed on the stock exchanges at Kolkata and Vadodara, Mumbai and the National Stock Exchange of India Limited, and its ADRs on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). The Bank is expanding in overseas markets and has the largest international balance sheet among Indian banks. ICICI Bank now has wholly-owned subsidiaries, branches and representatives offices in 18 countries, including an offshore unit in Mumbai.This includes wholly owned subsidiaries in Canada, Russia and the UK (the subsidiary through which the hisave savings brand is operated), offshore banking units in Bahrain and Singapore, an adviso ry branch in Dubai, branches in Belgium, Hong Kong and Sri Lanka, and representative offices in Bangladesh, China, Malaysia, Indonesia, South Africa, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates and USA. Overseas, the Bank is targeting the NRI (Non-Resident Indian) population in particular. ICICI reported a 1. 15% rise in net profit to Rs. 1,014. 21 crore on a 1. 29% increase in total income to Rs. 9,712. 31 crore in Q2 September 2008 over Q2 September 2007. The bank's current and savings account (CASA) ratio increased to 30% in 2008 from 25% in 2007.ICICI Bank currently has subsidiaries in the United Kingdom, Russia and Canada, branches in Singapore, Bahrain, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka and Dubai International Finance Center and representative offices in the United States, United Arab Emirates, China, South Africa and Bangladesh. Our UK subsidiary has established a branch in Belgium. ICICI Bank is the most valuable bank in India in terms of market capitalization. ICICI Bank's equity shares are list ed in India on the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange of India Limited and its American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) are listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). ICICI Bank has formulated a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics for its Directors and employees.At June 5, 2006, ICICI Bank, with free float market capitalization of about Rs. 480. 00 billion (US$ 10. 8 billion) ranked third amongst all the companies listed on the Indian stock exchanges. ICICI Bank was originally promoted in 1994 by ICICI Limited, an Indian financial Institution, and was its wholly owned subsidiary. ICICI's shareholding in ICICI Bank was reduced to 46% through a public offering of shares in India in fiscal 1998, an equity offering in the form of ADRs listed on the NYSE in fiscal 2000, ICICI Bank's acquisition of Bank of Madura Limited in an all-stock amalgamation in fiscal 2001, and secondary market sales by ICICI to institutional investors in fiscal 2001 and fiscal 2002.ICICI was form ed in 1955 at the initiative of The World Bank, the Government of India and representatives of Indian industry. The principal objective was to create a development financial institution for Providing medium-term and long-term project financing to Indian businesses. In the 1990s, ICICI transformed its business from a development financial institution offering only project finance to a diversified financial service group offering a wide variety of products and services, both directly and through a number of subsidiaries and affiliates like ICICI Bank. In 1999, ICICI become the first Indian company and the first bank or financial institution from non-Japan Asia to be listed on the NYSE.In October 2001, the Boards of Directors of ICICI and ICICI Bank approved the merger of ICICI and two of its wholly owned retail finance subsidiaries, ICICI Personal Financial Services Limited and ICICI Capital Services Limited, with ICICI Bank. The merger was approved by shareholders of ICICI and ICICI Bank in January 2002, by the High Court of Gujarat at Ahmadabad in March 2002, and by the High Court of Judicature at Mumbai and the Reserve Bank of India in April 2002. Consequent to the merger, the ICICI group's financing and banking Operations, both wholesale and retail, have been integrated in a single entity. Free float holding excludes all promoter holdings, strategic investments and Cross holdings among  Ã‚  Ã‚   public sector entities. BUSINESS OBJECTIVES Vision To be the leading provider of financial services in India and a major global bank. Mission We will leverage our people, technology, speed and financial capital to: be the banker of first choice for our customers by delivering high quality, world-class service. * Expand the frontiers of our business globally. * Play a proactive role in the full realisation of India’s potential. * maintain a healthy financial profile and diversify our earnings across businesses and geographies. * Maintain high standards of gov ernance and ethics. * Contribute positively to the various countries and markets in which we operate. * Create value for our stakeholders. * Product and Services Service and banking of ICICI bank categorized in to personal banking, business banking and NRI banking services. Personal banking- Deposit in form of saving, recurring, term deposit, senior itizen deposit and children depository account are there for individual customer can also avail of their housing, automobile, farm equipment, business or personal loan scheme. Personal client can also invest in mutual funds and participate in stock trading through ICICI bank. Business banking  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Business banking services of ICICI Bank are exhaustive. Project financing, deal assessment, and land evaluation are investment banking services offered to corporate clients. Global trade and cash management transaction services facilitate remittances and receipts across important cities. Capital market and custodial services enable busin ess houses to participate in equity trading and transfer across major stock markets of world.Customer ICICI bank targets all segment of customer with various types of products and services. I interacted with a a lot of customers and collect their feedback on the given services of company, and feedback are positive response from all point of view. Customers are beneficiary from both sides monetary as well as non monetary. The bank targets to add nearly 500,000 customers under the new scheme in the next one year and plans to offer auto loans through the new online channel in the future, ICICI Bank's Executive Director, V Vaidyanathan, said here. â€Å"As of now, nearly 24 per cent of our customer transactions are happening through internet.We are primarily targeting our urban customers, who constitute nearly 70 per cent of our total customer-base,† Vaidyanathan said. Customers, opting for the service can also benefit from the quantum optima facility, wherein if the balance exce eds Rs 5,000, the money will automatically be transferred to a fixed deposit scheme, he said. The facility, which also enable customers to transact between an ICICI Bank account and accounts in other banks, is being offered free of cost, he said ICICI bank, presently, has above 2 crore customers. The lender opened nearly 470 branches in the last fiscal. The lender has also plans to launch ‘SMS n Cash' scheme later this week under which ICICI account holders can transfer funds to those who do not have a bank account.ICICI bank is strongly committed to protecting the privacy of its customers and has taken all necessary and reasonable measures to protect the confidentiality of the customer information and its transmission through the world wide web and it shall not be held liable for disclosure of the confidential information when in accordance with this privacy commitment or in terms of the agreements, if any, with the customers. ICICI bank Endeavour’s to safeguard and en sure the security of the information provided by the customer. ICICI bank uses 128-bit encryption, for the transmission of the information, which is currently the permitted level of encryption in India.When the information provided by the customers is not transmitted through this encryption, the customer's system (if configured accordingly) will display an appropriate message ensuring the best level of secrecy for the customer's information. The customer would be required to cooperate with ICICI bank in order to ensure the security of the information, and it is recommended that the customers necessarily choose their passwords carefully such that no unauthorized access is made by a third party. To make the password complex and difficult for others to guess, the customers should use combination of alphabets, numbers and special characters (like! @, #, $ etc. ).The customers should undertake not to disclose their password to anyone or keep any written or other record of the password su ch that a third party could access it. * ICICI bank undertakes not to disclose the information provided by the customers to any person, unless such action is necessary to: * Conform to legal requirements or comply with legal process; * Protect and defend ICICI bank's or its affiliates rights, interests or property; * Enforce the terms and conditions of the products or services; or * Act to protect the interests of ICICI bank, its affiliates, or its members, constituents or of other persons. Competitor The main competitor of is ICICI bank is SBI because this bank is totally taken by government after this bank HDFC bank is the main competitor of ICICI bank .There are different types of segment operation semment, investment and services, demat and NRI services. The competitor from the operation segment are State Bank of India(SBI), Axis, Housing Development and Financial corporation(HDFC) etc. From the investment And service sector HDFC standard life insurance corporation, Bharati Axa life insurance ,Reliance Life Insurance Corporation, Max new work life insurance SBI Life insurance,Life Insurance Corporation of India. In demat section India bull,Anangram,SBI,HDFC,India Infoline are the main competitor of ICICI bank. In the NRI service section the Western Union bank is the main competitor of ICICI bank.There are some other company who also compete with the ICICI bank After the SBI the HDFC bank is the main competitor of ICICI bank. HDFC Bank Ltd. is a commercial bank of India, incorporated in August 1994, after the Reserve Bank of India allowed establishing private sector banks. The Bank was promoted by the Housing Development Finance Corporation, a premier housing finance company (set up in 1977) of India. HDFC Bank has 1,500 branches and over 2,890 ATMs, in 530 cities in India, and all branches of the bank are linked on an online real-time basis. As of September 30, 2008 the bank had total assets of INR 1006. 82 billion. State Bank of India is the largest bank in India.It is also, measured by the number of branch offices and employees, the second largest bank in the world. [citation needed] The bank traces its ancestry back through the Imperial Bank of India to the founding in 1806 of the Bank of Calcutta, making it the oldest commercial bank in the Indian Subcontinent. The Government of India nationalised the Imperial Bank of India in 1955, with the Reserve Bank of India taking a 60% stake, and renamed it the State Bank of India. In 2008, the Government took over the stake held by the Reserve Bank of India. SBI provides a range of banking products through its vast network in India and overseas, including products aimed at NRIs.With an asset base of $126 billion and its reach, it is a regional banking behemoth. SBI has laid emphasis on reducing the huge manpower through Golden handshake schemes and computerizing its operations. The State Bank Group, with over 16000 branches , has the largest branch network in India. It has a market share among Indian commercial banks of about 20% in deposits and advances, and SBI accounts for almost one-fifth of the nation’s loans. There are some other banks which gives challenging some how in the banking and service sectorthey are: * Allahabad Bank * Andhra Bank * Bank of Baroda * Bank of India * Bank of Maharashtra * Canara Bank * Central Bank of India Corporation Bank * Dena Bank * IDBI Bank * Indian Bank * Indian Overseas Bank * Oriental Bank of Commerce * Punjab & Sind Bank * Punjab National Bank * Syndicate Bank * UCO Bank * Union Bank of India * United Bank of India * Vijaya Bank Environment An employer the bank extends a lot of authority along with justified accountability to you. The working culture is very collaborative in nature. It can be owed to the fact that the bank is highly segmented with a lot of overlapping and mostly distinct roles and responsibility. ICICI Bank has established itself as a one stop solution (Universal Bank) for all financial need of indivi duals and institutions alike.The credit for the same can be attributed to its vast network, probably the largest among private sector banks. This makes the life of an employee a lot easier, especially for those who face the external customers. You do not have to justify your organization, it is only the product that has to be pitched. As far as employee benefits are concerned, ICICI Bank offers a lot of financial benefits ranging from your family health insurance to your kids school donations. The organization is sensitive to the needs of its employees as this quality is one of the building blocks (DNA) of the organizational culture. The organization will be giving you enough flexibility to innovate and come-up with new ideas.It will also exhibit its in terms of well laid systems, processes and infrastructure. It will extend a fast track growth for those with extraordinary talent at the same time offer stability to those who are able to deliver satisfactorily. Overall, I would say i t’s a lifetime experience to work with such a behemoth organization. It might not be the best paymaster but it definitely will impress you with its capability as the head master (Principal) of banking industry. there are huge competition between the eployee to achieve theo goal. BUSINESS OBJECTIVES: Vision To be the leading provider of financial services in India and a major global bank. Mission We will leverage our people, technology, speed and financial capital to: be the banker of first choice for our customers by delivering high quality, world-class service. * expand the frontiers of our business globally. * play a proactive role in the full realisation of India’s potential. * maintain a healthy financial profile and diversify our earnings across businesses and geographies. * maintain high standards of governance and ethics. * contribute positively to the various countries and markets in which we operate. * create value for our stakeholders. Product and Services Se rvice and banking of ICICI bank categorized in to personal banking, business banking and NRI banking services.Personal banking- Deposit in form of saving, recurring, term deposit, senior citizen deposit and children depository account are there for individual customer can also avail of their housing, automobile, farm equipment, business or personal loan scheme. Personal client can also invest in mutual funds and participate in stock trading through ICICI bank. Business banking  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Business banking services of ICICI Bank are exhaustive. Project financing, deal assessment, and land evaluation are investment banking services offered to corporate clients. Global trade and cash management transaction services facilitate remittances and receipts across important cities. Capital market and custodial services enable business houses to participate in equity trading and transfer across major stock markets of world.CUSTOMER ICICI bank targets all segment of customer with various types of products and services. I interacted with a a lot of customers and collect their feedback on the given services of company, and feedback are positive response from all point of view. Customers are beneficiary from both sides monetary as well as non monetary. The bank targets to add nearly 500,000 customers under the new scheme in the next one year and plans to offer auto loans through the new online channel in the future, ICICI Bank's Executive Director, V Vaidyanathan, said here. â€Å"As of now, nearly 24 per cent of our customer transactions are happening through internet.We are primarily targeting our urban customers, who constitute nearly 70 per cent of our total customer-base,† Vaidyanathan said. Customers, opting for the service can also benefit from the quantum optima facility, wherein if the balance exceeds Rs 5,000, the money will automatically be transferred to a fixed deposit scheme, he said. The facility, which also enable customers to transact between an ICICI Bank account and accounts in other banks, is being offered free of cost, he said ICICI bank, presently, has above 2 crore customers. The lender opened nearly 470 branches in the last fiscal. The lender has also plans to launch ‘SMS n Cash' scheme later this week under which ICICI account holders can transfer funds to those who do not have a bank account.ICICI bank is strongly committed to protecting the privacy of its customers and has taken all necessary and reasonable measures to protect the confidentiality of the customer information and its transmission through the world wide web and it shall not be held liable for disclosure of the confidential information when in accordance with this privacy commitment or in terms of the agreements, if any, with the customers. ICICI bank Endeavour’s to safeguard and ensure the security of the information provided by the customer. ICICI bank uses 128-bit encryption, for the transmission of the information, which is currently the p ermitted level of encryption in India.When the information provided by the customers is not transmitted through this encryption, the customer's system (if configured accordingly) will display an appropriate message ensuring the best level of secrecy for the customer's information. The customer would be required to cooperate with ICICI bank in order to ensure the security of the information, and it is recommended that the customers necessarily choose their passwords carefully such that no unauthorized access is made by a third party. To make the password complex and difficult for others to guess, the customers should use combination of alphabets, numbers and special characters (like! @, #, $ etc. ). The customers should undertake not to disclose their password to anyone or keep any written or other record of the password such that a third party could access it. ICICI bank undertakes not to disclose the information provided by the customers to any person, unless such action is necessa ry to: * Conform to legal requirements or comply with legal process; * Protect and defend ICICI bank's or its affiliates rights, interests or property; * Enforce the terms and conditions of the products or services; or * Act to protect the interests of ICICI bank, its affiliates, or its members, constituents or of other persons. COMPETITOR The main competitor of is ICICI bank is SBI because this bank is totally taken by government after this bank HDFC bank is the main competitor of ICICI bank . There are different types of segment operation semment, investment and services, demat and NRI services. The competitor from the operation segment are State Bank of India(SBI), Axis, Housing Development and Financial corporation(HDFC) etc.From the investment And service sector HDFC standard life insurance corporation, Bharati Axa life insurance ,Reliance Life Insurance Corporation, Max new work life insurance SBI Life insurance,Life Insurance Corporation of India. In demat section India bull, Anangram,SBI,HDFC,India Infoline are the main competitor of ICICI bank. In the NRI service section the Western Union bank is the main competitor of ICICI bank. There are some other company who also compete with the ICICI bank After the SBI the HDFC bank is the main competitor of ICICI bank. HDFC Bank Ltd. is a commercial bank of India, incorporated in August 1994, after the Reserve Bank of India allowed establishing private sector banks.The Bank was promoted by the Housing Development Finance Corporation, a premier housing finance company (set up in 1977) of India. HDFC Bank has 1,500 branches and over 2,890 ATMs, in 530 cities in India, and all branches of the bank are linked on an online real-time basis. As of September 30, 2008 the bank had total assets of INR 1006. 82 billion. State Bank of India is the largest bank in India. It is also, measured by the number of branch offices and employees, the second largest bank in the world. [citation needed] The bank traces its ancestry ba ck through the Imperial Bank of India to the founding in 1806 of the Bank of Calcutta, making it the oldest commercial bank in the Indian Subcontinent.The Government of India nationalised the Imperial Bank of India in 1955, with the Reserve Bank of India taking a 60% stake, and renamed it the State Bank of India. In 2008, the Government took over the stake held by the Reserve Bank of India. SBI provides a range of banking products through its vast network in India and overseas, including products aimed at NRIs. With an asset base of $126 billion and its reach, it is a regional banking behemoth. SBI has laid emphasis on reducing the huge manpower through Golden handshake schemes and computerizing its operations. The State Bank Group, with over 16000 branches , has the largest branch network in India. It has a market share among Indian commercial banks of about 20% in deposits and advances, and SBI accounts for almost one-fifth of the nation’s loans.There are some other banks w hich gives challenging some how in the banking and service sectorthey are: * Allahabad Bank * Andhra Bank * Bank of Baroda * Bank of India * Bank of Maharashtra * Canara Bank * Central Bank of India * Corporation Bank * Dena Bank * IDBI Bank * Indian Bank * Indian Overseas Bank * Oriental Bank of Commerce * Punjab & Sind Bank * Punjab National Bank * Syndicate Bank * UCO Bank * Union Bank of India * United Bank of India * Vijaya Bank ENVIRONMENT An employer the bank extends a lot of authority along with justified accountability to you. The working culture is very collaborative in nature. It can be owed to the fact that the bank is highly segmented with a lot of overlapping and mostly distinct roles and responsibility.ICICI Bank has established itself as a one stop solution (Universal Bank) for all financial need of individuals and institutions alike. The credit for the same can be attributed to its vast network, probably the largest among private sector banks. This makes the life of an employee a lot easier, especially for those who face the external customers. You do not have to justify your organization, it is only the product that has to be pitched. As far as employee benefits are concerned, ICICI Bank offers a lot of financial benefits ranging from your family health insurance to your kids school donations. The organization is sensitive to the needs of its employees as this quality is one of the building blocks (DNA) of the organizational culture.The organization will be giving you enough flexibility to innovate and come-up with new ideas. It will also exhibit its in terms of well laid systems, processes and infrastructure. It will extend a fast track growth for those with extraordinary talent at the same time offer stability to those who are able to deliver satisfactorily. Overall, I would say it’s a lifetime experience to work with such a behemoth organization. It might not be the best paymaster but it definitely will impress you with its capabili ty as the head master (Principal) of banking industry. there are huge competition between the eployee to achieve theo goal. TECHNOLOGY ICICI use many type of advance technological software like Pinnacle 7. 0 and Pinnacle7. 016.Among from this software ICICI bank uses the e-banking, core banking, mobile banking electronic display sy ICICI Bank was using Teradata for its data warehouse. However, due to its proprietary hardware, the cost of procurement, upgrades and administration was soaring. The closed box architecture of Teradata imposed restrictions on scalability. Secondly, querying and loading could not happen simultaneously. Queries could only be run during business hours because the loading of data had to take place during off-business hours. This meant that the refresh rate of EDW was delayed, so queries may not reflect the most current data. ICICI Bank was also dependent on Teradata for support and other activities: The bank was completely tied down to that solution.These iss ues compelled ICICI Bank to look for more efficient and flexible solutions. The solution would have to address not only current issues, but accommodate future growth expectations and business requirements. ICICI Bank evaluated numerous data warehousing solutions in the pursuit of solving its issues, and developed a shortlist of alternatives for its migration proof-of-concept: Sybase, SAS and Netezza. The primary criteria for evaluation was the price-to-performance ratio where Sybase IQ emerged the clear winner. During this rigorous testing, Sybase IQ delivered faster results on independent hardware and operating systems with minimum infrastructure.Commending the improvements achieved, Amit Sethi, Joint General Manager, ICICI bank says, â€Å"What impressed us wasthat even with overall lower costs, we could achieve significantly better query performanceafter implementing the Sybase enterprise warehouse solution. † ICICI Infotech today launched an enterprise resource planning ( ERP) solution for the small and medium enterprises. The ERP package – Orion Advantage – comes bundled with an HP dual processor Xeon server, Oracle 9i database, Windows 2003 server and costs about Rs 9. 90 lakh and has a 15-user license. An ERP package helps a manufacturer or any other business implementing it to manage all the important parts in the company such as product planning, parts purchasing, maintaining inventory and interacting with suppliers and customers.ICICI Infotech officials told a press conference here today that Orion Advantage offered a set of business practice solutions for industry segments such as engineering, auto ancillary, pharmaceuticals, chemicals and IT distribution. Besides the cost advantage, the ERP package also came pre-configured. ICICI Infotech had mapped the processes specific to each industry segment into the package. Mr. Manoj Kunkalienkar, Executive Director and President, ICICI Infotech, said that small and medium enterprises (SM Es) offered a good market and ICICI Infotech hoped to become a leading solution provider to this segment. Mr. R. K. Kanthi, Deputy General Manager, ICICI Infotech, said there was no ERP package for the SMEs that bundled the server, database and operating system right now.That was the advantage ICICI Infotech offered to SMEs as Orion Advantage came bundled and pre-configured. Besides the high cost of generic ERP packages, their implementation time as far as SMEs were concerned was also long. Orion Advantage could be installed in 45 days. ICICI Infotech had signed up six customers so far for the package and hoped to garner a 15 per cent market share of the SME segment, whose number in the country was estimated at 2. 30 lakh. Mr. K. S. Natarajan, Managing Director, Trident Pneumatics Pvt Ltd of Coimbatore, one of the companies that had installed Orion Advantage, said that the company had tried three other ERP packages, all of which had failed, before settling on Orion Advantage.Mr Kunk alienkar said that ICICI Infotech planned to move the two development centers in Chennai into a single location and double the staff strength from 300 now in the next two years. The Chennai centers were involved in research and development of Orion ERP solutions and Premia, an insurance package. ERP Systems Integration Pinnacle Software Solutions has the expertise and experience to assist you with your enterprise systems integration. From developing your strategy, through implementation and support, we bring the right combination of resources, management skillsets, and technical know-how. We will help you successfully integrate your  Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)  systems into your overall business and technology infrastructure.Whether you are planning an upgrade of an existing ERP system, or a complete replacement of a legacy application and platform, we can help you improve your financial, human resources, electronic mail, and other business systems. We work with the lead ing ERP systems, including the latest versions of the Oracle and PeopleSoft applications: ? General Ledger| ? Project Costing| ? Accounts Payable| ? Human Resources| ?   Accounts Receivable| ? Payroll| ? Purchasing| ? Benefits| ? Asset Management| ? Compensation| Our technology management solutions will help you migrate hardware platforms, improve network and database performance, develop or refresh policies and rocedures, and develop sound disaster recovery and backup solutions. Please contact us to learn how Pinnacle Software Solutions can help you develop â€Å"solutions that fit†Ã‚  your enterprise. ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company Limited ICICI Prudential life Insurance Company Limited was incorporated on 20th July 2000. The authorized capital of the company is Rs. 2300 million and the paid up capital is Rs. 1500 million. The company is joint venture of ICICI (74%) and UK based company Prudential Plc (26%). The company was granted certificate of registration for carrying business, by Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority on 24th November 2000.It commenced commercial operation from 19th December 2000 and becoming a leading private sector life insurance company. The company recognizes that the driving force for gaining sustainable competitive advantage in this business is superior customer experience and investment behind the brand. The company aims to achieve this by striving to provide world class service level trough constant innovation in product, distribution channels and technology based delivery. Vision and Mission Their vision is to make ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company the dominant new insurer in the life insurance industry. This they hope to achieve through their commitment to excellence, focus on service, speed and innovation, and leveraging our technological expertise.The success of the organisation will be founded on its strong focus on values and clarity of purpose. These include: *   Understanding the needs o f customers and offering them superior products and service *   Building long lasting relationships with their partners *   Providing an enabling environment to foster growth and learning for their employees And above all building transparency in all our dealings. They believe that they can play a significant role in redefining and reshaping the sector. Given the quality of their parentage and the commitment of their team, they feel that tere will be no limits to their growth. Board of DirectorsThe ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company Limited Board comprises reputed people from the finance industry both from India and abroad. Shri K. V. Kamath, Chairman Mr. Mark Tucker Smt. Lalita D. Gupte Mr. Danny Bardin Mrs. Kalpana Morparia Shri M. P. Modi Mr. John Caouette Shri S. P. Subhedar, (Alternate Director to Mr. Danny Bardin)   Mr. Derek Stott, (Alternate Director to Mr. Mark Tucker) Smt. Shikha Sharma, Managing Director Management Team Ms. Shikha Sharma, Managing Director Mr. Kevin Wright, Executive Vice President – Sales & Distribution Ms. Madhavi Soman, Chief – Strategic Initiatives Mr. V. Rajagopalan, Appointed Actuary Mr. Sandeep Batra, Chief Financial Officer & Company Secretary Mr.Saugata Gupta, Chief – Marketing & Service Mr. Shubhro J. Mitra, Chief – Human Resources Corporate Office: ICCI Prulife Towers, 1089, Appasahab Marathe Marg, Prabhadevi, Mumbai 400 025. Telephone Number: 022-462 1600 Website :  www. iciciprulife. com ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company ICICI Lombard  General Insurance Company Limited is a 74:26 joint venture between ICICI Bank Limited and Canada based  Fairfax Financial Holdings  Limited. ICICI Bank  is India's second largest bank, while  Fairfax Financial Holdings  is a diversified financial corporate engaged in general  insurance,  reinsurance, insurance claims management and  Investment management.Lombard Canada Ltd, a group company of Fairfax Financial Holdings Limit ed, is one of Canada's oldest property and casualty insurers. ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company received regulatory approvals to commence general insurance business in August 2000. Board Members * Mr K V Kamath, Chairman * Mr R Athappan, Director * Mr B V Bhargava, Director * Mr Dileep Choksi, Director * Mr James F Dowd, Director * Ms Lalita D Gupte, Director * Ms Kalpana Morparia, Director * Mr S Mukherji, Director * Mr Chandran Ratnaswami, Director * Mr H N Sinor, Director * Mr Sandeep Bakhshi, Managing Director & CEO Audit Committee * Mr. S Mukherji, Chairman * Mr. Dileep Choksi, Director * Mr. James F Dowd, Director * Mr. H. N. Sinor, Director Investment Committee * Mr.Chandran Ratnaswami, Chairman * Ms. Kalpana Morparia, Director * Mr. Sandeep Bakhshi,, Managing Director & CEO * Mr. S Gopalakrishnan, Head – Investments * Mr. Rakesh Jain, Head-Finance & Accounts * Mr. Liyaquat Khan, Appointed Actuary Board Governance Committee * Ms. Kalpana Morparia, Chairperson * M r. Chandran Ratnaswami, Director * Mr. H. N. Sinor, Director Retail Segment of ICICI Lombard General Insurance : ICICI Lombard's Retail Segment consists of personal insurance products – Health, Home, Motor and Travel insurances. Health Insurance ICICI Lombard is known to be a pioneer in introducing innovative concepts in the Indian health Insurance sector.Be it the floater concept, the critical illness cover or the tax gain policy, all these were first introduced by ICICI Lombard. It was also one of the first general insurance companies in India to have a robust online system in place for buying and renewing policies. The various plans offered by ICICI Lombard include  Family Floater Plan  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ where one policy covers the entire family,  Health Advantage Plus  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ where they cover OPD and dental expenses, also help save maximum tax under section 80D and  Critical Illness plan  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ a special policy covering a list of critical illnesses. They also have a basic  Personal Accident Plan  which covers against accidents. ICICI Lombard health plans also provide coverage against terrorism. Home InsuranceHome Insurance is actually one of the most neglected areas in the general insurance category. Simply, because people in general, especially in India, do not give much importance to it. However, in the recent years, due to the increase in awareness, and the great extent of damage caused to property due to natural calamities and terrorism, it has been gaining importance. The  Home Insurance Policyoffered by ICICI Lombard covers both the structure and the contents of the house. You can opt for either of the covers or both. Unlike other policies, it also covers damage due to terrorist activities, loss of cash, public liability, temporary resettlement and others. Motor InsuranceAs Motor Insurance is mandatory in India and is governed by the Motor Tariff Act, the policies offered by various companies are more or less the same. There is n ot much room for innovation in this category. ICICI Lombard too offers  Car Insurance  and  Two Wheeler Insurance. They are known to offer one of the best rates in the market. As the entire buying process is online and is instant, without any submission of documents or other formalities, people generally opt it for convenience. Travel Insurance Travel insurance is one of the most prominent sector of general insurance, especially overseas travel insurance and student medical insurance. ICICI Lombard offers various options in both the categories.The  Overseas Travel Plans  and  Student Medical Plans  offered cover medical and non-medical expenses, including compensation for flights hijacked and pre existing diseases in case of emergency. They charge on a per day basis if the travel is more than 7 days. ICICI Lombard has tied up with  United Health Group  to facilitate access to all its clinics while in U. S. The  Student Medical Plans  are accepted in almost univ ersities worldwide. They also have a section in their website,  University Search, where one can find specific plans for specific universities. All the above retail policies can be bought online, without any documentation through their website  www. icicilombard. com  . One can not only buy, but also manage and renew their insurance policies online. NRI ServicesICICI Lombard has developed insurance policies for  Non-resident Indians  that can be bought, renewed and tracked online. Parents' Health Insurance covers hospitalization and medical expenses incurred by parents of the policyholder in India. For parents' travelling outside India, ICICI Lombard offers a Parents' Overseas Travel Insurance policy. An  NRI  can insure his children/ dependents travelling abroad to study, under the Student Medical Insurance plan. Likewise, the Home Insurance and Car Insurance schemes enables an  NRI  to secure his assets in India. Channels Channel is the term used for the various approaches a company uses to tap its customers.ICICI Lombard uses a multi channel approach to ensure the sales, service and other allied activities are carried out in the most effective manner. Retail The Retail channel consists of sales executves, sales officers, brokers and agents. They are the one who are in direct contact with the customers and bring the innovative insurance solutions to their doorsteps. Online ICICI Lombard has developed a web-based system to meet all the pre and post-policy transaction. One can get quotes, buy, renew and track their policies onlin e through the website [www. icicilombard. com]. With the do-it-yourself architecture, the online channel is fast, convenient, easy to understand and operate. Technology ICICI use many type of advance technological software like Pinnacle 7. and Pinnacle7. 016. Among from this software ICICI bank uses the e-banking, core banking, mobile banking electronic display sy ICICI Bank was using Teradata for its data warehouse. However, due to its proprietary hardware, the cost of procurement, upgrades and administration was soaring. The closed box architecture of Teradata imposed restrictions on scalability. Secondly, querying and loading could not happen simultaneously. Queries could only be run during business hours because the loading of data had to take place during off-business hours. This meant that the refresh rate of EDW was delayed, so queries may not reflect the most current data.ICICI Bank was also dependent on Teradata for support and

Balancing On-line College Studies, Work, and Personal Relationships

Balancing On-line College Studies, Work, and Personal Relationships On-line college studies bring forth various challenges for a student as the concept of time may easily be disregarded or forgotten along with problems regarding distractions and the sense of presence (â€Å"Online Study Techniques†). In this sense, if a student also takes into consideration pressing issues such as those that stem from work, family, and friends, then the difficulty of successfully completing on-line college studies become even worse.However, the presence of such problems, difficulties, and challenges does not mean that every student going through on-line college studies has a myriad of excuses so as not to excel in their educational pursuit. In fact, given the right mind set and the right approach in decision making, it is most likely that a student will be able to optimally accomplish each task in his or her on-line studies while still being able to perform at work and maintain relations with family and friends.Personally, I incorporate concepts of time management and effective prioritization in order to attain efficient decision making. As mentioned, in decision making, I utilize effective prioritization in order to come up with the best possible options for a given situation. In this sense, I build up a hierarchy of considerations and events which may come up and how I should perceive each and every situation given if such situations overlap. In addition, I also develop a sense of hierarchy in relation to studies, work, friends, and family.Although it may seem that such an approach seems to be quite effective and one may bring up questions as to why even though people tend to have a similar approach but fail at decision making. The answer is quite simple, the reason for the inability to utilize prioritization as a tool for guiding decision making is not strictly followed and such individuals opt to choose the easier or more pleasurable choices instead of selecting the more important tasks.In my case though, I prioritize and decide according to which choice would bring the most positive effects. To expound upon the potential use of effective prioritization in terms of decision making, it is only proper to discuss through the use of specific examples. In this sense, a good example comes in the form of accomplishing additional tasks at work which basically translates into a bigger payout while also considering the progress through on-line studies and coursework.Considering that I already have a stable amount of funds and have a good amount of saving, then working for additional hours even though additional pay is given would not have been an efficient choice since technically my funds are already in excess. On the other hand, in relation to the on-line studies that have progressed slowly, allocating ample amounts of time and effort for such will definitely be not an excess and if I really want to attain my specialized associates' degree through dist ant learning, then I should spend more time to work on my studies.Hence, I chose to accomplish the latter option. However, sometimes one cannot simply choose an option over another especially if one or more of the possible choices are with added urgency. Since it is quite often that I am placed in a situation wherein I have to decide between different possible tasks in which time is of the essence, I have developed a way to incorporate efficient time management aside from effective prioritization into my decision making skills.To expound, efficient time management in my own perspective pertains to how the hours of the day or the days of the week are scheduled effectively in order to progress in my work and studies while still being a significant presence to my family and friends. Also, time management pertains to the reality that some decisions made or tasks accepted may be done on another day while some events cannot simply be accomplished if missed the first time around. In relati on to prioritization though, not every opportunity or task that may not reoccur on a definite time is not always the best option so time management in relation to decision making.A good example for the use of efficient time management in relation to decision making is in terms of choosing between the options of attending the birthday of my beloved niece and continuing my on-line studies. In the situation, it is quite expected that the birthday party, along with the opportunity to greet her and give her a gift in person, would only occur at a specific time and date. Considering that I am lagging behind in terms of my on-line studies, I also thought about using my free time to catch up with the remaining coursework.Of course, thinking that my studies are more important in the long run, and my niece would probably not hate me that much if I miss her birthday, my initial reaction was to just stay at home and continue my studies. Later on, I realized that if I missed the birthday then it might create an unavoidable stress between us. Taking into consideration that on-line studies are characteristically flexible in nature and progress may be made at one's own pace, then I simply went to the birthday, stayed for a while, and later on went back home to finally continue the coursework that should be completed.Hence, both tasks were accomplished. The important aspect of the decision making process in this sense, is the capability to postpone something to be done at a later time but still making sure that the postponed task is accomplished. In addition, it is also important to know which tasks should be conducted first and at the same time realize which tasks can really be set aside initially.In this sense, what works for me personally as discussed, is to utilize both time management and prioritization in deciding which tasks or events should be considered to be done first. Of course, such a method has some negative points as well. In most cases though, from a personal s tandpoint, it is definitely useful to use efficient time management and effective prioritization in relation to decision making as reflected through the stability of my personal relationships with family and friends, as well as good productivity at work and on my studies.

Blood Promise Chapter Fifteen

Abe glanced over at one of his guardians and gave a swift nod. The man instantly walked away. â€Å"It's done,† Abe said. â€Å"Just like that?† I asked in disbelief. His lips quirked into a smile. â€Å"Rolan knows who I am. He knows who works for me. Once Pavel makes my†¦ ah, wishes known, that will be the end of it.† I shivered, knowing Abe spoke the truth. Considering what a smartass I'd been to Abe this whole time, it really was a wonder I hadn't had my feet set in cement and been tossed into the ocean. â€Å"So why aren't you forcefully dragging me out of here?† â€Å"I never like to make anyone do anything they don't want to. Even Rolan. It's much easier if people simply see reason and do what I ask them to, without the use of force.† â€Å"And by ? ®see reason,' you mean, ? ®blackmail,'† I said, thinking of what I'd just agreed to. â€Å"We made a trade,† he said. â€Å"That's all. Don't forget your end of the bargain. You promised to leave here, and you don't seem like the type to go back on your word.† â€Å"I don't.† â€Å"Rose!† Viktoria suddenly appeared at the door. Wow, that was fast. Pavel was calmly dragging her by her arm. Her hair was mussed, and a dress strap was slipping from her shoulder. Her face was a mixture of incredulity and anger. â€Å"What did you do? That guy came and told Rolan to get out of here and never see me again! And then†¦ Rolan agreed. He just left.† I found it slightly funny that Viktoria immediately blamed me for this. True, I was responsible, but Abe was standing right there. It wasn't a secret who his employees were. Nonetheless, I defended my actions. â€Å"He was using you,† I said. There were tears in Viktoria's brown eyes. â€Å"He loves me.† â€Å"If he loves you, then why did he hit on me as soon as your back was turned?† â€Å"He did not!† â€Å"He's the one who got Sonya pregnant.† Even in the alley's dim lighting, I saw her face pale. â€Å"That's a lie.† I threw up my hands. â€Å"Why would I make that up? He wanted to make plans with me as soon as you were out of town!† â€Å"If he did,† she said, voice shaking, â€Å"it was because you led him on.† I gaped. Beside me, Abe listened quietly, a smug look on his face. He was so self-satisfied and probably thought he was being proven right. I wanted to punch him, but Viktoria was my concern. â€Å"How can you think that? I'm your friend!† I told her. â€Å"If you were my friend, you wouldn't be acting like this. You wouldn't try to stand in my way. You act like you loved my brother, but there's no way you could have-no way you really understand love!† Didn't understand love? Was she crazy? If she only knew what I'd sacrificed for Dimitri, what I'd done to be where I was now†¦ all for love. She was the one who couldn't understand. Love wasn't a fling in a back room at a party. It was something you lived and died for. My emotions surged, that darkness welling up within me that made me want to lash out in return for her horrible accusation. It was only through the strongest of efforts that I remembered she was already hurting, that she only said the things she did because she was confused and upset. â€Å"Viktoria, I do understand, and I'm sorry. I'm only doing this because you're my friend. I care about you.† â€Å"You aren't my friend,† she hissed. â€Å"You aren't part of this family. You don't understand anything about us or how we live! I wish you'd never come here.† She turned and stormed away, pushing back inside through the long line of partygoers. My heart ached as I watched her. I turned to Abe. â€Å"She's going to go try to find him.† He still wore that damnably knowing expression. â€Å"It won't matter. He'll have nothing to do with her anymore. Not if he values that pretty face of his.† I was worried for Viktoria but kind of had a feeling Abe was right about Rolan. Rolan would no longer be an issue. As for Viktoria's next guy†¦ well, that was a worry for another day. â€Å"Fine. Then we're done here. Do not follow me anymore,† I growled. â€Å"Keep your promise to leave Baia, and I won't have to.† I narrowed my eyes. â€Å"I told you: I always keep my promises.† And as I hurried back to the Belikov house, I suddenly wondered if that was true. The blowout with Abe and Viktoria was like cold water on my face. What was I doing here? To a certain extent, Abe had been right†¦ I had been deluding myself, pretending Dimitri's family was my own in order to soothe my grief over him. But they weren't. This wasn't home. The Academy wasn't my home either, not anymore. The only thing I had left was my promise-my promise to Dimitri. The promise I'd somehow lost sight of since coming here. Some of the Belikov family was in bed when I got home, but others were still in the living room. I slipped upstairs to my room, waiting anxiously for Viktoria to get home. A half hour later, I heard footsteps on the stairs and the sound of her door closing. I knocked gently on it. â€Å"Viktoria,† I said in a loud whisper. â€Å"It's me. Please talk to me.† â€Å"No!† came the response. â€Å"I don't ever want to talk to you again.† â€Å"Viktoria-â€Å" â€Å"Go away!† â€Å"I'm just worried about you.† â€Å"You aren't my brother! You aren't even my sister. You have no place here!† Ouch. Her voice was muffled by the door, but I didn't want to risk a fight in the hall and let the others hear. Going to my room, my heart breaking, I stopped and stood in front of the mirror. It was then that I knew she was right. Even Abe was right. Baia wasn't my place. In a flash, my meager belongings were packed, but I hesitated before going downstairs. Viktoria's closed door stared at me, and I had to fight the urge to knock again. If I did, it would only trigger another fight. Or, maybe even worse, she would forgive me-and then I would want to stay forever, lost in the comfort of Dimitri's family and their simple life. Taking a deep breath, I headed downstairs and walked out the front door. I wanted to tell the others goodbye but worried the same thing would happen, that I'd look at their faces and change my mind. I needed to go, I realized. I was angry at both Viktoria and Abe. Their words had hurt me, but there'd been truth in them. This wasn't my world. I had other things to do with my life. And I had a lot of promises to keep. When I was about eight blocks away, I slowed down, not because I was tired but because I wasn't sure where I was going. Leaving that house had been the biggest step. I sank down on the curb in front of a neighbor's silent, dark yard. I wanted to cry without knowing why. I wanted my old life back. I wanted Dimitri and Lissa. Oh, God, I wanted them. But Dimitri was gone, and the only way I'd see him was if I truly set out to kill him. And as for Lissa†¦ she was more or less gone to me too. Even if I survived this, I didn't think she could forgive me. Sitting there, feeling lost and alone, I tried reaching out to her one more time. I knew it was foolish, considering what I'd seen before, but I had to try one more time. I had to know if I really could have my old place back there. I slipped inside her mind instantly, my runaway emotions making the transition easy. She was on a private jet. If Jill had been stunned by meeting St. Vladimir's A-list students, going on a trip with them made her downright comatose. She stared at everything wide-eyed and barely said a word during the whole flight to the Royal Court . When Avery offered her a glass of champagne, Jill could barely stammer out, â€Å"N-no thanks.† After that, the others seemed to forget about her and got carried away by their own conversation. Lissa noticed Jill's uneasiness but didn't do much to remedy it. That was a shock. The Lissa I had known would have gone out of her way to make Jill comfortable and be included. Fortunately, the younger girl seemed perfectly entertained by watching the others' antics. I also took comfort in knowing Jill would be okay once she met up with Mia. Lissa had sent word ahead to Mia to come pick up Jill when they landed, seeing as Lissa and the others had to attend to one of Tatiana's functions right away. Mia had said she'd take Jill under her wing for the weekend and show her some of the innovative things she'd learned to do with her water magic. Lissa was glad for this, happy she wouldn't be babysitting a freshman all weekend. Even if Jill was totally off of Lissa's radar, one person wasn't: Avery's brother Reed. Their father had decided it would be a good idea for Reed to go with them, and seeing as Mr.-excuse me-Headmaster Lazar had played a key role in working with Tatiana to arrange this trip, there was little argument. Avery had rolled her eyes and spoken to Lissa about it covertly, just before boarding. â€Å"We're all riding your reputation,† Avery said. â€Å"Part of the reason Dad let me come was because you're in good with the queen, and he wants it to rub off on me. He's then hoping I'll get in good with her, and then that'll rub off on Reed-and the rest of the family.† Lissa tried not to over think the logic too much. Mostly, she was bothered because Reed Lazar was still as unpleasant as he'd been the first day they met. He wasn't really mean or anything; it just made her uncomfortable being around him. Really, he was the polar opposite of Avery. Whereas she was animated and could always strike up conversation, he stayed tight-lipped and spoke only when spoken to. Lissa couldn't really tell if it was shyness or disdain. When Lissa had tried asking him if he was excited to go to Court, Reed had simply shrugged. â€Å"Whatever. I don't care.† His tone had been almost hostile, like he resented her for asking, so she'd given up all other attempts at conversation. The only person, other than his sister, that Lissa saw Reed ever speak to was Avery's guardian Simon. He had also come along. When the flight landed, Mia was as good as her word. She waved enthusiastically when Lissa stepped off the plane, her blond curls whipping around in the wind. Lissa grinned back, and they gave each other quick half-hugs, something that never failed to amuse me given their former enemy status. Lissa made introductions for those who needed them as an escort of guardians led them away from the landing strip and toward the inner portion of Court. Mia welcomed Jill so warmly that the younger girl's uneasiness faded, and excitement glowed in her green eyes. Smiling fondly, Mia glanced away from Jill and over to Lissa. â€Å"Where's Rose?† Silence fell, followed by uncomfortable glances. â€Å"What?† demanded Mia. â€Å"What did I say?† â€Å"Rose is gone,† said Lissa. â€Å"Sorry†¦ I thought you knew. She dropped out and left after the attack because there were some things†¦ some personal things†¦ she needed to take care of.† Lissa feared Mia would ask about the personal things. Only a few people knew about my search for Dimitri, and Lissa wanted to keep it that way. Most thought I'd just disappeared from post-battle trauma. Mia's next question completely shocked Lissa. â€Å"Why didn't you go with her?† â€Å"What?† Lissa stammered. â€Å"Why would I do that? Rose dropped out. No way am I going to.† â€Å"Yeah, I suppose.† Mia turned speculative. â€Å"You guys are just so close-even without the bond. I assumed you'd follow each other to the ends of the earth and figure out the details later.† Mia's own life had gone through so much upheaval that she took that kind of thing in stride. That weird, fluctuating anger I'd been feeling pop up in Lissa every so often suddenly reared its head and turned on Mia. â€Å"Yeah, well, if we were so close, then it seems like she wouldn't have left in the first place. She's the selfish one, not me.† The words stung me and clearly shocked Mia. Mia had a temper of her own, but she sat on it and simply held up her hands in an apologetic way. She really had changed. â€Å"Sorry. Wasn't trying to accuse you of anything.† Lissa said nothing else. Since my departure, she'd beat herself up about a lot of things. She'd gone over and over things she could have done for me before or after the attack, things that might have made me stay. But it had never occurred to her to go with me, and the revelation hit her like a smack to the face. Mia's words made her feel guilty and angry all at the same time-and she wasn't sure who she was the maddest at: me or herself. â€Å"I know what you're thinking,† said Adrian a few minutes later, once Mia had led Jill away and promised to meet up later. â€Å"What, you read minds now?† asked Lissa. â€Å"Don't have to. It's written all over your face. And Rose never would have let you go with her, so stop agonizing over it.† They entered the royal guest housing, which was just as lush and opulent as it had been when I'd stayed there. â€Å"You don't know that. I could have talked her into it.† â€Å"No,† said Adrian sharply. â€Å"You couldn't have. I'm serious-don't give yourself one more thing to be depressed about.† â€Å"Hey, who said I'm depressed? Like I said, she abandoned me.† Adrian was surprised. Since my departure, Lissa had been more sad than anything. She'd occasionally been angry at my decision, but neither Adrian nor I had seen such vehemence from her. Dark feelings boiled within her heart. â€Å"I thought you understood,† said Adrian, with a small, puzzled frown. â€Å"I thought you said you'd-â€Å" Avery suddenly interrupted, giving Adrian a sharp look. â€Å"Hey, hey. Leave her alone, okay? We'll see you at the reception.† They were at a point where the groups had to split, girls going to one part of the lodging and guys to the other. Adrian looked like he wanted to say more, but instead he nodded and headed off with Reed and a couple of guardians. Avery put a gentle arm around Lissa as she glared at Adrian's retreating figure. â€Å"You okay?† Avery's normally laughing face was filled with concern. It startled Lissa in the same way Adrian's moments of seriousness always startled me. â€Å"I guess. I don't know.† â€Å"Don't beat yourself up over what you could have or should have done. The past is gone. Move on to the future.† Lissa's heart was still heavy, her mood blacker than it had been in quite a while. She managed a tight smile. â€Å"I think that's the wisest thing you've ever said.† â€Å"I know! Can you believe it? Do you think it'll impress Adrian?† They dissolved into laughter, yet despite her cheery exterior, Lissa was still struck by Mia's offhand comments. They plagued Lissa in a way she hadn't thought possible. What really bothered her the most wasn't the thought that if she'd come with me, she could have kept me out of trouble. No. Her biggest issue was that she hadn't thought of coming with me in the first place. I was her best friend. As far as she was concerned, that should have been her immediate reaction to my departure. It hadn't been, and now Lissa was racked with even more guilt than usual. The guilt was all-consuming, and she would occasionally transform it to anger to ease the pain. It didn't help much. Her mood didn't improve as the evening progressed, either. Not long after the group's arrival, the queen hosted a small reception for the most elite of all visitors who had come to the Court. Lissa was quickly discovering that the queen always seemed to be hosting some party or another. At one point in her life, Lissa would have considered that fun. She no longer did, at least not when it came to these kinds of parties. But keeping her dark feelings locked up, Lissa stayed good at playing the role of nice royal girl. The queen seemed happy that Lissa had a â€Å"suitable† royal friend and was equally pleased when Lissa impressed other royals and dignitaries she was introduced to. At one point, though, Lissa's resolve nearly faltered. â€Å"Before you leave,† said Tatiana, â€Å"we should see about your guardians.† She and Lissa stood together with a group of admirers and hangers-on who were keeping respectful distances. Lissa had been staring vacantly at the bubbles in her untouched champagne and looked up with a start. â€Å"Guardians, your majesty?† â€Å"Well, there's no delicate way to put this, but now, for better or for worse, you're without any protection.† The queen paused respectfully. â€Å"Belikov was a good man.† My name naturally didn't come to her lips. I might as well have never existed. She'd never liked me, particularly since she thought I was going to run off with Adrian. As it was, Lissa had noticed Tatiana watching with some consideration while Avery and Adrian flirted. It was hard to say if the queen disapproved. Her partying aside, Avery seemed a model girl-save that Tatiana had wanted Lissa and Adrian to eventually get together. â€Å"I don't need any protection right now,† said Lissa politely, her heart clenching. â€Å"No, but you'll be out of school soon enough. We think we've found some excellent candidates for you. One of them's a woman-a lucky find.† â€Å"Janine Hathaway offered to be my guardian,† said Lissa suddenly. I hadn't known that, but as she spoke, I read the story in her mind. My mom had approached her not long after I left. I was a little shocked. My mom was very loyal to her current assignment. This would have been a big move for her. â€Å"Janine Hathaway?† Tatiana's eyebrows rose nearly to her hairline. â€Å"I'm sure she has other commitments. No, we've got much better choices. This young lady's only a few years older than you.† A better choice than Janine Hathaway? Not likely. Before Dimitri, my mother had been the gold standard by which I measured all badassedness. Tatiana's â€Å"young lady† was undoubtedly someone under the queen's control-and more importantly, not a Hathaway. The queen didn't like my mom any more than she liked me. Once, when Tatiana had been bitching me out for something, she'd made a reference to a man my mother had been involved with-someone whom I suspected might be my father, a guy named Ibrahim. The funny thing was, the queen had almost sounded like she had once had an interest in the guy too, and I had to wonder if that was part of her dislike for my family. Lissa put on a tight, polite smile for the queen and thanked her for the consideration. Lissa and I both understood what was going on. This was Tatiana's game. Everyone was part of her plan, and there was no way to go against her. For a brief moment, Lissa had that strange thought again, of something Victor Dashkov had once said to her. Aside from his crazy killing and kidnapping schemes, Victor had also wanted to start a revolution among the Moroi. He thought the power distribution was off-something Lissa occasionally believed too-and that it was wielded unfairly by those with too much control. The moment was gone almost as soon as it came. Victor Dashkov was a crazy villain whose ideas deserved no acknowledgment. Then, as soon as courtesy allowed, Lissa excused herself from the queen and headed across the room, feeling like she was going to explode with grief and anger. She nearly ran into Avery as she did. â€Å"God,† said Avery. â€Å"Do you think Reed could embarrass me any more? Two people have tried to make conversation with him, and he keeps scaring them off. He actually just told Robin Badica to shut up. I mean, yeah, she was going on and on, but still. That is not cool.† Avery's dramatic look of exasperation faded as she took in Lissa's face. â€Å"Hey, what's wrong?† Lissa glanced at Tatiana and then turned back to Avery, taking comfort in her friend's blue-gray eyes. â€Å"I need to get out of here.† Lissa took a deep, calming breath. â€Å"Remember all that good stuff you said you knew about? When is that going to happen?† Avery smiled. â€Å"As soon as you want.† I returned to myself, sitting there on the curb. My emotions were still going crazy, and my eyes were fighting off tears. My earlier doubts were confirmed: Lissa didn't need me anymore†¦ and yet, I still had that feeling that there was something odd going on that I couldn't quite put a finger on. I supposed her guilt over Mia's comment or spirit side effects could be affecting her, but still†¦ she wasn't the same Lissa. Footsteps on the pavement made me look up. Of all the people who might have found me, I would have expected Abe or maybe Viktoria. But it wasn't. It was Yeva. The old woman stood there, a shawl draped over her narrow shoulders, and her sharp, cunning eyes looking down at me disapprovingly. I sighed. â€Å"What happened? Did a house fall on your sister?† I asked. Maybe there was a benefit to our language barrier. She pursed her lips. â€Å"You can't stay here any longer,† she said. My mouth dropped open. â€Å"You†¦ you speak English?† She snorted. â€Å"Of course.† I shot up. â€Å"All this time you've been pretending not to? You've been making Paul play translator?† â€Å"It's easier,† she said simply. â€Å"You avoid a lot of annoying conversation when you don't speak the language. And I've found that Americans make the most annoying conversation of all.† I was still aghast. â€Å"You don't even know me! But from the first day, you've been giving me hell. Why? Why do you hate me?† â€Å"I don't hate you. But I am disappointed.† â€Å"Disappointed? How?† â€Å"I dreamed you would come.† â€Å"I heard that. You dream a lot?† â€Å"Sometimes,† she said. The moonlight glinted in her eyes, enhancing her otherworldly appearance. A chill ran down my spine. â€Å"Sometimes my dreams are true. Sometimes not. I dreamed Dimka was dead, but I didn't want to believe it, not until I had proof. You were my proof.† â€Å"And that's why you were disappointed?† Yeva drew the shawl more tightly around her. â€Å"No. In my dreams, you shone. You burned like a star, and I saw you as a warrior, someone who could do great deeds. Instead? You've sat around and moped. You've done nothing. You haven't done what you came to do.† I studied her, wondering if she really knew what she was talking about. â€Å"And what is that exactly?† â€Å"You know what it is. I dreamed that, too.† I waited for more. When it didn't come, I laughed. â€Å"Nice vague answer. You're as bad as any scam fortune-teller.† Even in the darkness, I could see the anger kindle in her eyes. â€Å"You've come to search for Dimka. To try to kill him. You must find him.† â€Å"What do you mean ? ®try'?† I didn't want to believe her, didn't want to believe she might actually know my future. Nonetheless, I found myself getting hooked in. â€Å"Have you seen what happens? Do I kill him?† â€Å"I can't see everything.† â€Å"Oh. Fantastic.† â€Å"I only saw that you must find him.† â€Å"But that's all you've got? I already knew that!† â€Å"It's what I saw.† I groaned. â€Å"Damn it, I don't have time for these cryptic clues. If you can't help me, then don't say anything.† She stayed quiet. I slung my bag over my shoulder. â€Å"Fine. I'm leaving then.† And like that, I knew where I would go. â€Å"Tell the others†¦ well, tell them thank you for everything. And that I'm sorry.† â€Å"You're doing the right thing,† she said. â€Å"This isn't where you should be.† â€Å"So I've heard,† I muttered, walking away. I wondered if she'd say anything else: chastise me, curse me, give me more mysterious words of â€Å"wisdom.† But she stayed silent, and I didn't look back. I had no home, not here and not in America. The only thing left for me was to do what I'd come to do. I had told Abe I kept my promises. I would. I'd leave Baia like I told him. And I'd kill Dimitri, as I'd promised myself I would. I knew where to go now. The address had never left my mind: 83 Kasakova. I didn't know where it was, but once I reached the town's center, I found a guy walking down the street who gave me directions. The address was close by, only about a mile, and I headed out at a brisk pace. When I reached the house, I was glad to see that the lights were still on. Even as pissed off and raging as I was, I didn't want to wake anyone up. I also didn't want to speak to Nikolai and was relieved when Denis opened the door. His expression was all astonishment when he saw me. Despite his bold words back at the church earlier, I don't think he'd really believed I'd join him and the other unpromised ones. He was speechless, so I did the talking. â€Å"I changed my mind. I'm coming with you.† I took a deep breath, bracing myself for what came next. I'd promised Abe I'd leave Baia-but I hadn't promised to return to the U.S. â€Å"Take me to Novosibirsk.†

Figurative Language Versus Literal Language Essay

Figurative Language Versus Literal Language - Essay Example On the other hand, literal language is the complete opposite of figurative language because it means exactly what it says; what is spoken should always be taken as pure fact. Many people often get confused about figurative language and what it actually refers to. This is why it is so important to understand what the language is referring to and what the intended meaning is. In this paper, the ten most common forms of figurative language will be discussed. They are as follows: (1) idiom; (2) analogy; (3) metaphor; (4) simile; (5) cliche; (6) amphiboly; (7) flame word; (8) hyperbole; (9) euphemism; and (10) colloquialism. The first type of figurative language, idiom, is a phrase that is made up of unrelated words that only make sense when used together. Idioms evolve over time as people get comfortable saying them. An example of an idiom would be ‘a slip of the tongue.’ Of course, it is impossible for a tongue to actually slip, but the idiom is referring to a misspoken wor d or phrase. Idioms only make sense when the listener understands all the parts of the phrase individually and then is able to put them together to get the intended meaning. People who are in the process of learning a new language often don’t understand idioms because they simply don’t have the vocabulary to do so. ...The third type of figurative language, metaphor, is different from analogy because it makes a direct comparison between two unrelated things. The purpose of a metaphor is to show or express emotion where simple language would not suffice. An example of a metaphor would be ‘his house is a fortress.’ It is very unlikely that someone’s house would be a fortress, but what the metaphor is trying to explain is that the house is impressive. A metaphor is often used in poetry to describe something in a beautiful way. If someone took a metaphor literally, then they might have a hard time believing it. The next type of figurative language, simil e, is very similar to a metaphor except it uses the word as or like when making a comparison between two unrelated things. A simile is also often used in poetry. An example of a simile would be ‘the boy runs as fast as a cheetah.’ The phrase does not actually claim that the boy can run the same speed of a cheetah, only that he runs so fast that it seems like he does. There are very few misunderstandings over a simile because it does not make a direct comparison and so cannot be taken literally. The fifth type of figurative language, cliche, is a common phrase that has been used so much that it has lost its original meaning. Cliches are used in everyday speech and eventually become part of a language. An example of a cliche would be ‘time will tell.’ The time cannot actually tell anything since it has no form of communication except to give the time. Just like an idiom, a cliche would be hard for someone who is learning a new language to comprehend.  Ã‚  

The geographical location where a child is raised can be influence Essay

The geographical location where a child is raised can be influence their development. critically evaluate the recent research regarding this claim - Essay Example The family, the school, and the neighbourhood are the main environment in which a child is nurtured. These three social constructs may give forth a suitable ground for a child to flourish or may pose challenges that threaten to compromise the normal development. Environmental factor such as diseases and surrounding physical features also influence the healthy development of the child (Espy, Molfese & DiLalla, 2001). A research conducted by Ferguson, Cassells, MacAllister & Evans (2013) illustrates how many children fail to reach their full human potential because of many factors including their geographic location. The factors influenced by the geographic location include toxics, noise, pollutants, housing, crowding, noise, neighborhood, and school quality, affecting both socio-emotion and cognitive development. Research confirms that the bigger population of world children reside in the in the developing world. As a result, most of the children seem exposed to poor physical environment leading to poor health among others. Additionally, they expound how physical locations exposed to toxins and pollutants tend to affect these children’s Intelligence Quotient (IQ). These may be regions with chemical drainages including mercury, polychlorinated biphenyls, pesticides, and air pollution from the vast industrial growth. Majority of the children live in these industrial areas meaning they face exposure to all types of polluted air that poses a danger to their health. These children in the poor urban locations suffer from water pollution, sanitation, and access to a clean environment. There is a lot of noise in these locations especially from the factory that affect their learning environment. In addition, poor housing affects their living conditions and consequently their health and education value. The research article draws a good picture of how poor environment may introduce the child to chaos, crowding, and

One Hundred Years of Solitude Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

One Hundred Years of Solitude - Essay Example Ideally, Marquez was brought up by her paternal grandparents in Aracataca, Colombia. His childhood tales talks about a big home that are filled with ghouls, discussions in secret code, and relatives who could prophesy their own deaths (Villad 40-50). Through reading this book One Hundred Years of Solitude, one observes many elements of Marquez’s childhood. Conversely, the perspective for the book is Marquez’s own personal reminiscence for childhood, for his grandparents, for a big house overflowing with ghouls and endless laughter. Also, the context of the book is Marquez’s political viewpoint and the brutal realism of growing up in a predominantly turbulent developing country. Colombia has a long and tragic socioeconomic history, in which Marquez acquired knowledge about politics and economics. Intermittent absentmindedness, particularly of the critical happenings that shape Macondo town remains a structural persistent right through the novel, apparent in recurr ence and circularity. This repetitive behavior traits and names of the Buendia offspring; the outwardly endless civil wars; the succeeding refuge of annihilated Aureliano in the bare practice of making little gold fish, melting down and remaking them; the stages of dissatisfaction, lack of accomplishment and tragic death that curses pedigree. This novel appears to be suggesting that the failure to learn from one’s blunders, the lack of historical awareness, becomes the primary curse called upon Macondo’s history and therefore a critical element in the series of dealings surrounding the killing of the banana workers (Browitt 16-33). The chronological burden of wars, economic distress, consecutive ethical failures and political betrayal, ultimately leads to devastation. One Hundred Years of Solitude chronicles historical facts from the inside. Garcia Marquez adeptly avoids the melodramatic style of former socialist realisms by placing the storyline focalization within th e community of Macondo. He ingeniously permits the Colombian bourgeoisie to conceal its profligacy through its own dealings. Garcia Marquez’s technique around classical realists is basically to locate the story-telling height of popular culture, focalizing dealings in the course of their understanding of the townspeople, who through their discerning memory re-live the past. Furthermore, Garcia Marquez does not â€Å"problematise† the language of illustration; his magical realism changes the entity of representation itself, permitting the magical and superstitious world of oral folk mores to stand for itself. This novel makes use of eminent uniqueness of the Latin American modernist tradition (Browitt 16-33). The first thing the reader notices when reading Marquez’s novel is the mere quantity of dealings it covers, therefore making it a daunting task to provide a brief synopsis of the plot. Even though the novel rests on an impossible to read manuscript given to a family by a strange gypsy, there are many tangents and twirls as we realize the events of the Buendia’s in their home town of Macondo. This seemingly makes the novel a tad too difficult to follow, with family disputes, civil war, incestuous relationships and industrialization, tossing the story-line into many numerous directions. The political wars and quarrels in the novel reflect the taut relationship between the liberals and the conservatives throughout Colombian History, where the exertion for