There seems to be an infinite numbers of charities but less of social enterprises, though it is becoming a growing type of organization.  The Arc Initiative highlights the aspects of social entrepreneurship, “building a two-way exchange of knowledge and business skills.”  They create not just profits to give away, but create a social change and impact – to teach rather than to just simply give.

If the United Nations were fully funded, it would not be able to assess and resolve the same issues that social enterprisesor the Arc Initiative face.  To quote Arielle Uwonkunda, “I told him about non-profits that have donated money to Rwanda following the war but didn’t make a lasting impact.”  Giving money or charity will only last so long, it would be more beneficial to give people the tools to become economically self-sufficient. This in turn makes a sustainable and long-term impact, that spreads on to the local communities.

It’s important to aid countries and communities in a global sense, but also to recognize the issues in our local community.  Community is a second-hand store located in the Downtown Eastside that hires women who have barriers to being employed
due to unfortunate circumstances.  This example of social entrepreneurship exemplifies that you do not have to buy a plane ticket to make changes, but it can be done in your own home. The UN might be able to just provide money, but would they provide that same social impact? – Probably not.

Bike sharing has become increasingly popular in major cities, even beginning to hit Canada.  The whole concept of bicycle sharing usually has sustainability attached to it, the article stating it can lead to a “sustainable world.”  I’d have to agree with this statement, it meets the triple bottom line – catering to people and providing exercise, promoting eco-friendly transportation, and returning economic profit.

Vancouver has had a plan to implement the project somewhere near 2015.  Bike sharing would fit very well for Vancouver and is a smart move by the city, since it is popularly known for its encouragement of sustainability and pretty much anything “green.”  Coming from Vancouver, it is known that there is lots of controversy behind the increasing bike
lanes.  A bike sharing system would have an additional positive outlook to the use of these bike lanes and maybe encourage more people to go out and use them.  Bike theft is also a worsening problem in Vancouver, and shared bikes could ease this issue with the technologies they use to lock the bikes up.  Even a bike sharing system at UBC would be a terrific idea, since the university is known as a hot spot for stolen bikes.  Overall, I see a public bike system being benefit for this city and other cities in the world.

It can most certainly not be denied that Apple Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies in the market.  Adrian Hung’s post comments that this is largely due to Apple’s marketing strategy.  The recent release of the iPhone 6 Plus has skyrocketed prices due to the supply not meeting the great demand, and that in China it is even going for $3000 for one unit.  Adrian states that their marketing strategy is the reason for this, that the uncertainty and built up hype is what makes consumers go wild for their products.  I agree with this to some extent, every year around August and September all you hear are these rumours of what the new iPhone will look like – Apple’s marketing strategy at work.

Apple does have an intelligent marketing scheme, although I must say that their sales and demand of the products are due to the brand.  Apple has done an incredible job with climbing their way to the top of the ladder with consumer electronics.  The brand seems to have a little “luxury appeal” to it. Even when walking into a class in university there is a sea of macbooks, and one can feel minuscule with not having an apple product.  The marketing has of course led to this image of the Apple Brand.  However in these recent years, I would have to say that their sales are more due to the brand than that of the Apple marketing strategy.

Online streaming of television has erupted and grown exponentially for the past few years. My classmate, Lily Du created a post on the regeneration of TV.  It commented on the fact that cable providers like Bell and Rogers need to rethink their business plans and have long-term efficiency.  She states that companies need to be constantly regenerating and innovating their products and that is their job to keep up.  I do agree with this, the fact that technology will constantly be changing.  However, sometimes companies cannot keep up with these technological changes and therefore can no longer succeed in the industry.

Online streaming is most certainly an upcoming disruptive innovation, replacing DVD’s and even TV’s. It’s the age of Netflix, and no longer the days of going to your local Blockbuster and picking out movies for Friday night.  Disruptive innovations cannot be stopped, and luckily for Bell and Rogers it shouldn’t be difficult to transition into the new online streaming market.  Other companies, like Blockbuster, could not compete with these innovations and it was the end of movies as a physical product.  Many companies in the industry will have great trouble keeping up with this growing industry, and the disruptive innovation of online streaming will surely take some companies down with them.

Walking into an apple store, one will always see a crowd of people and lots of smiles. Apple seems to be doing something right when it comes to their retail customer service. The following blog post comments on the 10 things you can learn from walking into an Apple Store.  A lot of it touches upon the service of the employees, how they empower them and that goes on to the satisfaction of customers.  The apple store is also a non-commission floor, which I think attributes a lot to the positive experiences people generally have in the store.  The employees don’t feel forced to just make as many sales as possible, but to answer questions and make the customer happy.

Apple’s organizational culture deemed very similar to that of Zappos, of which we recently discussed in class. The positive atmosphere and the training of customer service seems to benefit the two companies greatly, and of course the two are seen as very successful companies – Apple especially.  I believe that in places of retail, this type of organizational culture plays very well.  It can be seen in the likes of Walmart vs. Costco, and rewarding employees with benefits tends to turn out very valuable in the long run.

BC Hydro has implemented a plan to build a dam, Site C, which is an 8 billion dollar project.  The Union of BC Indian Chiefs are strongly opposing this project, who recently declared that “B.C. is Indian land.”  If the dam were to be created, it would 83 km of the Peace River Valley, destroying farmland and habitat.  However the other side is arguing that they need the clean hydroelectric power due to growing industry and population.

The issues with Aboriginal Peoples and the government taking land that is rightfully theirs is an age-old issue that seems to be never-ending.  The First Nations have valid points of opposing Site C – it will simply destroy their land and also their homes.  I find that even when the First Nations have a stronger case, the BC government tends to get their way. Site C has been approved and could begin constructing anytime soon.  The government’s determination to implement all these projects connects me to our class about business ethics; and that sometimes people forget what business they’re in or what job they’re supposed to do, and instead are in the business of money.  The following article claims First Nations believing that the government can have Site C or the LNG Pipeline – not both. This seems fair, however from the looks of it the provincial and federal governments will obtain their wants through whatever measures it will take, once again.