Smart Data Pricing

A pragmatic approach to Big Data by taking the reader on a journey between Big Data (what it is) and the Smart Data (what it is for). Today’s decision making can be reached via information (related to the data), knowledge (related to people and processes), and timing (the capacity to decide, act and react at the right time). The huge increase in volume of data traffic, and its format (unstructured data such as blogs, logs, and video) generated by the “digitalization” of our world modifies radically our relationship to the space (in motion) and time, dimension and by capillarity, the enterprise vision of performance monitoring and optimization.

Commodity Option Pricing: A Practitioner’s Guide covers commodity option pricing for quantitative analysts, traders or structurers in banks, hedge funds and commodity trading companies. Based on the author’s industry experience with commodity derivatives, this book provides a thorough and mathematical introduction to the various market conventions and models used in commodity option pricing. It introduces the various derivative products typically traded for commodities and describes how these models can be calibrated and used for pricing and risk management. The book has been developed with input from traders and examples using real world data, together with relevant up to date academic research. The book includes practical descriptions of market conventions and quote codes used in commodity markets alongside typical products seen in broker quotes and used in calibration. Also discussed are commodity models and their mathematical derivation and volatility surface modelling for traded commodity derivatives. Gold, silver and other precious metals are addressed, including gold forward and gold lease rates, as well as copper, aluminium and other base metals, crude oil and natural gas, refined energy and electricity. There are also sections on the products encountered in commodities such as crack spread and spark spread options and alternative commodities such as carbon emissions, weather derivatives, bandwidth and telecommunications trading, plastics and freight. Commodity Option Pricing is ideal for anyone working in commodities or aiming to make the transition into the area, as well as academics needing to familiarize themselves with the industry conventions of the commodity markets.

—Reed Holden, founder, Holden Advisors Corp., www.holdenadvisors.com coauthor, The Strategy and Tactics of Pricing: A Guide to Profitable Decision Making, Third Edition «With Pricing on Purpose, Ron Baker had made an enormous contribution to the better understanding of pricing that will be accessible to anyone who wants to learn. People are intrigued by instances of what they see as idiosyncratic pricing. Sometimes it is idiosyncratic, but oft-times it is fiendishly clever and well researched. So is this book. There are examples that at first sight seem to have nothing to do with the subject at hand, but the learning points are all made and explained in any number of interesting and memorable ways. Pricing on Purpose is a welcome and valuable addition to the learning on pricing and I recommend it to professional pricers, marketers, and anyone interested in capturing the value their business creates.» —Eric G. Mitchell, President, Professional Pricing Society, www.pricingsociety.com «Ron Baker is what I'd call a 'thought giant.' In his first two books he literally began a revolution in the accounting and legal professions. Thousands of professionals in public practice now lead far better, more rewarding lives thanks to him. Now he's broadened his impact in a huge way. Read this book, implement the ideas and you'll never look at your prices or your pricing policies in the same way again. You'll be richer in many ways because of it.» —Paul Dunn, founder and CEO, ResultsNet Australia, coauthor, The Firm of the Future: A Guide for Accountants, Lawyers, and Other Professional Services, www.resultsnetaustralia.com «As a reader of hundreds of business books, I am thrilled when I come across one that has something new to say. Pricing on Purpose does just that. Instead of presenting a set of feel-good items to check off a list, Ron Baker encourages us 'to think with him, not like him.' He methodically builds his argument leading us through the labyrinth of pricing theory and encourages us to look at pricing as the strategic tool that it is rather than taking the lazy cost-based tactical approach of most businesses. To paraphrase Karl Marx in terms of Baker's book, 'Cost-based pricing is the opium of business.'» —Ed Kless, Director, Partner Development and Recruitment, Sage Software «Baker has done it again! Building on the core principles that he advanced in Professional's Guide to Value Pricing and The Firm of the Future, Ron Baker has again evolved thought leadership on the critical dynamics of value and pricing. Baker's latest work, Pricing on Purpose: Creating and Capturing Value, provides real-world examples and practical strategies that provide a framework for pricing optimization. His clarity of purpose and passionate call to action resonates in today's intellectual capital economy.» —Thomas Finneran, Executive Vice President, American Association of Advertising Agencies «We love this book! With detailed research, thorough references, and recommendations for further reading, this could be considered a textbook. That it is so readable and engaging is a triumph. The chapter providing the epitaph for cost-plus pricing is worth many times the price of this book. 'Got price-sensitive customers? Wonder why? Read and stop weeping. Who's in charge of value in your company?' Baker asks. If you can't immediately answer, you'd better read this book. Bravo, Baker!» —Paul O'Byrne and Paul Kennedy, partners, O'Byrne and Kennedy LLP, Chartered Accountants, United Kingdom, www.obk.co.uk "Ron Baker is nothing short of brilliant, and his enthusiasm for pricing is contagious. Pricing on Purpose will add more value to your firm than anything else you could do. As usual in Ron's books, he presents cutting-edge ideas. There is no gr

Advanced praise for Transfer Pricing Methods «Feinschreiber and a team of renowned executives have provided the definitive transfer-pricing guide to this challenging area. At a time when many companies are reviewing documents, policies, and procedures, it's wonderful to have a concise, clearly written reference focused on what may be the most critical corporate tax issue.» -Charles R. Goulding, Managing Director, Tax Cooper Industries, Inc. «It is refreshing to find a treatise on transfer pricing that combines practical business considerations, economic theory, and a discussion of technical tax rules in a way that is meaningful not only for large corporate enterprises but also small and medium-sized businesses.» -Vikram A. Gosain, JD, CPA, Director of Transfer Pricing General Electric Capital Corporation «This well-written book will be useful both to attorneys new to the practice area and to older hands. It includes very helpful discussions on valuation issues that will be particularly useful for in-house counsel and accountants.» -Joseph C. Mandarino, Partner Troutman Sanders, LLP «Feinschreiber and his contributors have cogently explained hundreds of useful facets in the transfer pricing field that have taken others volumes to articulate. The busy professional should consider this book in his or her quest for knowledge in the scintillating tax specialty.» -Charles L. Crowley, Partner ITS/Customs and International Trade Practice, Ernst & Young, LLP «Transfer Pricing Methods . . . should become a standard tool for every owner-managed and mid-cap multinational.» -Enrique MacGregor, Principal-in-Charge, Transfer Pricing Services Grant Thornton LLP «Bob's vast experience in transfer pricing matters has again been captured between the covers of a book. Thank you, Bob, and your contributing colleagues, for producing another valuable helpmate.» -Alan Getz, Vice President and General Manager, Tax Mitsui & Co., Inc. (U.S.A.) «Feinschreiber's current publication is a practical handbook that presents transfer pricing tools that can assist tax professionals of mid-sized companies to optimize profits, manage cash flows, and moderate taxes in a defensible manner.» -Per H. Hasenwinkle, National Practice Leader, Transfer Pricing BDO Seidman, LLP

Traditionally engineers devised communication services without reference to how they should be priced. In today's environment pricing is a very complex subject and in practice depends on many parameters of the actual market – including amount of traffic, architecture of the network, technology, and cost. The challenge is to provide a generic service model which accurately captures aspects such as quality and performance, and can be used to derive optimal pricing strategies. Recent technology advances, combined with the deregulation of the telecommunication market and the proliferation of the internet, have created a highly competitive environment for communication service prividers. Pricing is no longer as simple as picking an appropriate model for a particular contract. There is a real need for a book that explains the provision of new services, the relation between pricing and resource allocation in networks; and the emergence of the internet and how to price it. Pricing Communication Networks provides a framework of mathematical models for pricing these multidimensional contracts, and includes background in network services and contracts, network techonology, basic economics, and pricing strategy. It can be used by economists to fill in the gaps in their knowledge of network services and technology, and for engineers and operational researchers to gain the background in economics required to price communication services effectively. * Provides a broad overview of network services and contracts * Includes a primer on modern network technology and the economic concepts relevant to pricing and competition * Includes discussion of mathematical models of traffic flow to help describe network capability and derive pricing strategies * Includes coverage of specialist topics, such as regulation, multicasting, and auctions * Illustrated throughout by detailed real examples * Suitable for anyone with an understanding of basic calculus and probability Primarily aimed at graduate students, researchers and practitioners from electrical engineering, computer science, economics and operations research Pricing Communication Networks will also appeal to telecomms engineers working in industry.

Three things can happen when establishing a product price. A price set too high is a lost sale that could have been profitable at a lower price. A price set too low is rewarded with unprofitable work. Only when a price is set appropriately does a company make both a sale and a profit. Just as activity-based costing and activity-based management revolutionized the cost accounting world, activity-based pricing will bring a disciplined approach to developing pricing. Activity-based pricing examines the relationships between price, cost and sales volume and how this relationship effects profitability. Pricing for Profitability joins the disciplines of marketing, economics, business strategy, engineering and cost accounting to achieve maximum profitability.

Practical, expert coverage of investment pricing methods for financial professionals This book on investment pricing methods offers accounting and financial practitioners and academics a solid understanding of the techniques and methods investment analysts use to price common financial investment instruments, such as commercial mortgages, private placement-bonds, mortgage-backed securities, private and public equities, derivatives, and joint ventures. Clarification of important terminology and an overview of fundamental concepts are provided for less experienced professionals, while in-depth and up-to-date discussion of technical matters offers experienced professionals expert dissection of more complex material. This authoritative and reliable guide features: PowerPoint(TM) presentation for teaching purposes available online at www.wiley.com/go/investmentpricing In-depth and up-to-date pricing models Verbal and formula explanations for all mathematical equations Tips on reviewing investment prices for accuracy or flaws Investment type characteristics such as contractual provisions, cash flows, and risks for applying Statement 133 hedge effectiveness guidelines Basic building blocks of investment pricing methodologies including present value methodologies used for pricing and evaluating common investment types Coverage of complex issues including term structure of interest rates, determinants of bond yields and stock risk premiums, estimation of free cash flows for valuing a business entity, and more

PRICING INSURANCE RISK A comprehensive framework for measuring, valuing, and managing risk Pricing Insurance Risk: Theory and Practice delivers an accessible and authoritative account of how to determine the premium for a portfolio of non-hedgeable insurance risks and how to allocate it fairly to each portfolio component. The authors synthesize hundreds of academic research papers, bringing to light little-appreciated answers to fundamental questions about the relationships between insurance risk, capital, and premium. They lean on their industry experience throughout to connect the theory to real-world practice, such as assessing the performance of business units, evaluating risk transfer options, and optimizing portfolio mix. Readers will discover: Definitions, classifications, and specifications of risk An in-depth treatment of classical risk measures and premium calculation principles Properties of risk measures and their visualization A logical framework for spectral and coherent risk measures How risk measures for capital and pricing are distinct but interact Why the cost of capital, not capital itself, should be allocated The natural allocation method and how it unifies marginal and risk-adjusted probability approaches Applications to reserve risk, reinsurance, asset risk, franchise value, and portfolio optimization Perfect for actuaries working in the non-life or general insurance and reinsurance sectors, Pricing Insurance Risk: Theory and Practice is also an indispensable resource for banking and finance professionals, as well as risk management professionals seeking insight into measuring the value of their efforts to mitigate, transfer, or bear nonsystematic risk.

The practical guide to using pricing and profitability management to build a better business A comprehensive reference for any business professional looking to understand the capabilities and competencies required for effectively managing pricing and profitability, Pricing and Profitability Management explains how to determine the right approach, tools, and techniques for each of six key categories (pricing strategy, price execution, advanced analytics and optimization, organizational alignment and governance, pricing technology and data management, and tax and regulatory effectiveness). Exploring each category in detail, the book addresses how an integrated approach to pricing improvement can give a sustainable, competitive advantage to any organization. The ultimate «how to» manual for any executive or manager interested in price management, the book presents a holistic, comprehensive framework that shows how integrating these pricing categories into a cohesive program leads to impressive gains that cannot be achieved through a single-pronged approach. Presents a comprehensive framework for more effectively managing pricing and profitability Identities the six key categories of pricing and profitability management Shows you how to gain a competitive edge by managing pricing and profitability Taking a comprehensive view of pricing, companies can position themselves to tap a vast source of shareholder value—the ability to set and enforce profitable prices, not just once, but again and again in response to marketplace changes and evolving business needs—and this book will show you how.

The credit derivatives market is booming and, for the first time, expanding into the banking sector which previously has had very little exposure to quantitative modeling. This phenomenon has forced a large number of professionals to confront this issue for the first time. Credit Derivatives Pricing Models provides an extremely comprehensive overview of the most current areas in credit risk modeling as applied to the pricing of credit derivatives. As one of the first books to uniquely focus on pricing, this title is also an excellent complement to other books on the application of credit derivatives. Based on proven techniques that have been tested time and again, this comprehensive resource provides readers with the knowledge and guidance to effectively use credit derivatives pricing models. Filled with relevant examples that are applied to real-world pricing problems, Credit Derivatives Pricing Models paves a clear path for a better understanding of this complex issue. Dr. Philipp J. Sch?nbucher is a professor at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH), Zurich, and has degrees in mathematics from Oxford University and a PhD in economics from Bonn University. He has taught various training courses organized by ICM and CIFT, and lectured at risk conferences for practitioners on credit derivatives pricing, credit risk modeling, and implementation.