“If  the United Nations was fully funded why would we need the Arc or social enterprise?”

(I love the connections between history and business as a proud history buff who watches documentaries in her free time.)

I’m going to expand on this and say if the UN was fully funded and fully functional.

My answer is yes.

At the very core of the UN, it had ONE purpose: to prevent a third world war.  We’ve arguably gotten close to a third world war but it hasn’t happened.

And for the UN to become fully funded/functional, everyone in the UN would need to be able to agree and compromise.  Unfortunately, like all politics, that’s not the case.  Until everyone can agree on single actions that are beneficial to everyone, social enterprises (like the ARC) will be necessary.

The UN has in their charter “to maintaining international peace and security, developing friendly relations among nations and promoting social progress, better living standards and human rights.”  But that doesn’t mean that other groups can’t help as well.  

If one charity was fully funded, why do we need other charities?

Isn’t more generally better than less?  Isn’t it better that more people want to help others?

The main issue with the UN is the barricade of diplomacy and the veto system that seems outdated (why is France there?) and lacks representation.  Like, the only times they actually decide on something is when either the Russian or Chinese diplomat walks out!  That’s not functional.  (They are about as functional as the US Senate…)

The UN needs severe improvement and social enterprises are doing great work to help others so why stop?

To say that the relationship between the Canadian government and the First Nations people is strained would be an understatement.  From a historical trend of discrimination, to present stereotyping and issues regarding land and pipelines (the Enbridge pipeline being the example in my mind), the relationship is very stressed.

In a meeting with several First Nations leaders back in September, Premier Christy Clark, wishes for more cooperation, with an ultimate goal of “a system of ‘multi-level governance’ that incorporates indigenous law with provincial and federal law.”  She also realizes that perfect harmony is an overly optimistic goal currently: “‘partnerships don’t mean we won’t have disagreements.'”  

How do First Nations groups affect business? Due to their heavy connection with the environment and the current topic of the pipeline being proposed to be built across BC, the presence of First Nations is apparent in the oil industry.

From various land claims, much of the land the proposed pipeline needs to go through is under First Nations control.  And history would just be unproductively repeating itself if the oil companies built without any consulting with the locals.

The general theme of this issue which can be applied to many other industries and communities is communication or the lack of.

A lot of the time, businesses (typically those who lack a ethical aspect) would rather use money and force than communication to solve problems.  Why go through all the meetings when you can just hand a cheque and tell people to get lost?

People. sometimes those who you want to be your consumers, are often an external issue– a threat.  But maybe it doesn’t have to be that way.  Maybe instead of conflict and behaving like children, maybe cooperation can happen.

http://www.vancouversun.com/life/Premier+urges+cooperation+more+litigation+government+natives+reach+fork+road/10194776/story.html

Great news– Amazon is launching same-day shipping for those living in Vancouver! As someone who does a substantial amount of shopping online with impatience and horrible planning skills, I am personally excited.

Basically, provided the order is placed before noon, Amazon will have it shipped to your front door before 9pm that night!  Now, Amazon is taking the online shopping game to the next level (with shipping FedEx would be envious of).  Additionally, the shipping prices are very reasonable (for the world of online shipping) with $7/order for Amazon Prime members and for non members, $12/shipping and $2/item.

Amazon’s business model is focused around two aspects: accessibility and convenience.

In regards to accessibility, it is infinite with Amazon.  A consumer can find almost any item they desire for sale on Amazon.  Any product in any colour.  Using their laptop or smartphone, a consumer can purchase these items wherever they want.  Why wait on the bus to the mall to find a present (just to discover that it’s sold out) when you can purchase it online.

Secondly, convenience.  With many people on the go and constantly rushing about, the old days of window shopping all across town before purchasing is simply infeasible.  With Amazon’s online platform, they revolutionized e-business– and now, launching same-day shipping is allowing them again to reinvent how shipping is done.

Why is this important? It’s important because in the current world, everything moves so quickly as data that shipping and businesses need to be able to move at the same speed as their consumers to remain relevant. 

http://www.vancitybuzz.com/2014/11/amazon-launches-day-delivery-vancouver/

It wouldn’t be a Comm 101 blog without a post about Apple, right?

On Thursday, October 30th, Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, made the mature, privacy-sacrificing decision of coming out.

He’s gay.

Cook published an eloquent and professional article to Bloomberg Businessweek to officially confirm the rumours about his sexual preference.  In his article, he explains what led him to come out– a daunting task to most people in his shoes.

He states that, “Being gay has given [him] a deeper understanding of what it means to be in the minority and provided a window into the challenges that people in other minority groups deal with every day. It’s made [him] more empathetic, which has led to a richer life. It’s been tough and uncomfortable at times, but it has given [him] the confidence to be [himself], to follow [his] own path, and to rise above adversity and bigotry. It’s also given [him] the skin of a rhinoceros, which comes in handy when [one’s] the CEO of Apple.”

One trait I feel is necessary in business (in any field actually) is the ability to emphasize with others.  To understand others.  In business, one needs to know and understand their consumers.  From that, they can develop certain value propositions to attract and maintain their consumers.  (The ability to emphasize also allows one to fight the belief that all business people are cold, calculating and only care about the money.) I feel, that it is from experiences with differences and adversary that one gains the ability to emphasize (that and literature).  From his experience with being gay, a minority in a mainly heterosexual world, Cook learned to emphasize with others which is beautiful.

While many businesses support gay rights (examples such as Oreo and Smirnoff), there are other business (typically associated with a theological within their business model) that are against these rights.

Using the United States as an example, as there is a larger divide on the topic of LGTBQ(etc.) rights, how does the stance on homosexuality affect business?  Does it matter (it shouldn’t)?

While Cook may have been concerned that him coming out would have a negative impact on Apple (meanwhile in Russia where a Steve Jobs– Apple’s late founder– memorial was torn down), I know that he 1) knows Apple’s customer base 2) trusts in Apple’s brand that the supreme quality of the product would outweigh any negative impact from his coming out and 3) if someone is too bigoted to not buy an Apple product because he is who he is, then that business from that customer is not worth it.

Representation of any sort is always welcome– whether it’s the gay CEO of one of the world’s most successful brands or it’s Sauder grads who combined both their love of business and arts (Jenny and Tom).  I’m exceedingly impressed by Cook’s decision.

And, actually, how does a business’ stance on any current issue affect it? There are two equally understandable, yet opposing answers: Yes, it does affect it– if two business have the same or similar products, then consumers may choose based on which business they share values with.  No, it does not affect it– people should being going after the business for the product and not the values of the people in charge.

What’s your opinion?  Would you choose one business over another because the leaders valued one thing over another? (An example coming to mind is Toms and their One for One policy.)

On Tuesday, it was released that BC Ferries was considering eliminating their Horseshoe Bay (West Vancouver)- Departure Bay (Nanaimo) route. 

As seen in a collection of testimonies from commuters posted in The Vancouver Sun Wednesday, no one is in favour of the proposed elimination.  In fact, most were outraged.

There are two BC Ferries terminals in Nanaimo, previously mentioned Departure Bay and Duke Point (featuring the alternative route to Tsawwassen (south of Ladner and Delta)).  Possibly for one with a vehicle, the rerouting though Tsawwassen wouldn’t be as big a deal as they are capable of traveling the new distance but for some commuters on foot (one woman in the linked video above), it makes traveling to the mainland like they always have been impossible. (And for the drivers, it takes an hour to get to West Vancouver from Tsawwassen– provided traffic is light, which it rarely is.)

From a business perspective, I do understand why BC Ferries would try to eliminate that route and send everyone though the Tsawwassen terminal instead.  As I was raised in Victoria with family in Vancouver, I’ve been on the ferries my entire life, probably several hundred times.  I remember when I was young, playing at the park at the Tsawwassen terminal for hours because it was summer and there was a three sailing wait due to the mass amount of people.  Now, most recently in May, I arrived at the Swarts Bay (operating terminal for Victoria/southern island) at 11:57am for the noon sailing and made it on without a problem.  The problem is that sailings are often running half full (with the exception of holidays and long weekends).  Sailings are running half full because fares are constantly increasing, making even a day trip to Vancouver unfeasible for most.

The real kicker: As demand for sailings is decreasing, the fares are increasing– which is the problem why sailings have low passenger rates.

I understand that BC Ferries is trying to eliminate costs and increase ridership (pun not intended) on the alternative Tsawwassen- Duke Point sailing by riding itself of the Horseshoe Bay- Departure Bay sailings but that does not change that the negative views of the public on this proposal.  (Is no one mention that this is one of the two routes that creates a profit?)

Fortunately, the public was heard and the BC government has discarded the proposal to eliminate the route, a relief to many.

So what’s your opinion? What do you think about BC Ferries? Should it matter when most people don’t live on Vancouver Island?

Toyota, in the sustainability vehicle market, is very well know for the Toyota Prius which was released for the market seventeen years ago.  They are known for the hybrid.

So why are they putting so much effort into the newly unveiled Toyota FCV?  (FCV standing for Fuel Cell Vehicle)

Thinking of the prep video from Class 8, I think about what was said about the ladder and positioning.  How it is hard to push a leader off the top.  Toyota, in my mind, is the leader of hybrids with their Prius, while Tesla, in my opinion again, is the leader of electric vehicles.  (The latter somewhat because of my love of the Lotus Elise and, in case no one told you, the Tesla Roadster was basically an electric twin of the Elise– it was also 6% Lotus so thats cool).

But wouldn’t it seem like natural progression for Toyota to be transitioning into electric vehicles?  Yes, but they wouldn’t be first so whether they do electric vehicles today or ten years from now, it doesn’t matter.

Thus, next year, Toyota will be releasing one of the first cars powered by hydrogen fuel cells to the public market (in Europe, Japan and California).  And suddenly, they have positioned themselves first.  

Personally, I have never heard of a Fuel Cell Vehicle until twenty minutes ago when browsing BBC News.  A quick Wikipedia scan later and I know that a FCV creates electricity to power the electric motor by a combination of oxygen (very very abundant) and hydrogen.

The issues with hydrogen are very similar to electricity, at least in regards to the fuel/charging stations and whether the infrastructure is worth it/will be available.  However, people need to begin thinking long term.  In the future, the infrastructure will be there– for all electric and hydrogen cars alike.  Similar to when Toyota first released the Prius way back in 1997, they again are thinking long term.  And if it plays out like the Prius has for them on the hybrid market, then Toyota could be sitting with a winner on their hands.

As a Toyota owner and fangirl (google “Toyota second gen MR2” and try to convince me that car isn’t the coolest), I am curious at what Toyota has in store for the gradual shift in the car market towards more sustainable options.

Bibliography

Toyota plans for a fuel cell future. (n.d.).BBC News. Retrieved October 6, 2014, from http://www.bbc.com/news/business-29459999

Cruising Pulsepress, I found Julia’s post on the topic of competition for Netflix (I know, I gasped too) and felt the need to comment back.

The appearance of Shomi, the collaborative creation by both Rogers and Shaw, was expected– maybe not so much the creator partnership between Rogers and Shaw, but the idea of a rival for Netflix was heavily anticipated.  And it’s unlikely that Shomi is the first of its kind to take on the beast that is Netflix.  Although, none have been successful as I was not aware of the ‘competition’ until a quick google search enlightened me.

While it is a good move for Rogers and Shaw to follow the trends, as most people now prefer steaming television rather than cable, is it worth it this late in the game?  As recalled from the article for the class 8 prep on positioning, Ries and Trout both agreed that “It is quite difficult to change a consumer’s impression once it is formed.”  Since Netflix was the first one there, everyone remembers it.  Netflix is iconic.  Netflix has left a lasting impression on consumers.  Supposed ‘rivals’ will have a tough time even getting near the level of recognition that Netflix has among the general population.

Yes, there are some weak points in Netflix, particularly in their Canada website which only offers roughly half of its American counterpart (and it seems to offer the bad half to be honest).  However, that isn’t a major issue as there are still ways for Canadians to access the American Netflix site.

I actually don’t think that Shomi will succeed in taking out Netflix, but I also don’t think that destroying Netflix is its purpose.  Shomi’s purpose is to offer another direct streaming source.  They don’t want people to abandom Netflix (as they realize few people will), they want people to embrace Shomi additionally.

And a shout out to Julia for her lovely post. 🙂

Sometimes, it’s hard to work with your friends to get anything done, to make any productive decisions everyone agrees with.  If that is true, what made Tim Warrillow and Charles Rolls decide to go into business together just after about a few hours of knowing each other?

Well, Warrillow made quite the first impression on Rolls.  Rolls said he was not too concerned about starting a tonic water brand (Fever-Tree) with Warrillow as “‘[Rolls] could see an energetic, but pretty mature and determined individual.  Tim was exactly the right type of person.'”

But what is the right type of person?  What makes someone good in business?  When I sit in the CPA Hall between classes, I see all these people– older students dressed far more professionally than myself, fancy latte in one hand, fancy smartphone in the other– and they almost seem to blend together.  Like they were all cut from the same mould that mades a businessman/businesswoman.  But what about those people who don’t feel like they fit that mould?  The ones who are different.

Good news for them is that there isn’t a mould and business is driven by being different.  In products and people, differentiation is a positive thing (a strategy in fact).

From Rolls’ first impression of Warrillow, I gathered that while there isn’t a cut-and-dry type of business person, there are some advantageous traits that I feel successful business people share.  As quoting Rolls, some of these are maturity, energy and determination.  You won’t get anything or anywhere in business by being a whiny child– maturity.  Business is fast and dynamic– energy.  And nothing will ever move forward if you don’t have the drive nor the motivation– determination.

Or maybe it doesn’t take any of those traits.  Maybe if you just care about what you’re doing then you’re set.  Maybe passion for something is what motivates and drives success.

Rolls also says that, “‘As long as you have mutual respect you can go a long way further in business with two heads rather than one.'”  In business, even if you’re the boss, teamwork is key.  You have to respect and cooperate with one each other— fundamentals most are taught in preschool.  With the right team of committed and driven individuals, any business can flourish.

What does it mean to be in business?  This is something I think about a lot.

I will always think about this a lot.

Bibliography

Setting up business with a stranger. (n.d.). BBC News. Retrieved September 28, 2014, from http://www.bbc.com/news/business-29209814