This class, we had Jeff Kroeker from the other COMM 101 lectures come in to speak to us about social good. I remember the topic of social good coming up in class before, but we did not expand on it. I have always been interested in the business of creating goods and services not only to make a living but to also help others in need.

Something he spoke specifically about was Salem’s Ethiopia, a craft boutique in Ethiopia. He discussed what her social good was, her success in crafts, and dealing with the authenticity of her hand-made crafts.

I think that incorporating social good into a business is a great idea because for some people who genuinely like to give back to their community, it is a great motivation to further the company while guaranteeing that they stay true to their company and the company’s value.

I especially enjoyed this class because we covered many different small organizations that have social good. I also enjoyed the use of videos from places such as Ethiopia as it gave a better visual interpretation of the topic.

Source: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/small-business/sb-growth/day-to-day/can-fair-trade-boutique-expand-without-alienating-customers/article4405520/

You see this word everywhere; in class, at the mall, in washrooms, at the lounge. Signs can be seen everywhere to promote sustainability.

A video explaining sustainability:

In class, our guest speaker discussed all aspects of sustainability, and how sustainability relates to our COMM 101 class. This was interesting and new to me because I thought the that the topic of sustainability was only to help the earth, but I learned that it has an effect on accounting and marketing.

I also learned that Vancouver is a very sustainable city. I only moved to Vancouver this summer, whether it was the transition from high school to university or the new city, but I began to notice the effort put into making the world more sustainable. Vancouver is more sustainable because of the culture here, and because of events such as the Olympics that took place here in 2010.

I especially enjoyed the activity we did in class where we calculated our own carbon footprint. I learned that the calculation takes commute, long distance travel, food and shelter into account. Because of this activity I can learn to be more sustainable!

Example of sustainability posters in places we go to everyday.

Today’s class was much anticipated as last class, Rob asked us to be on time and prepared with thought-provoking questions to ask our guest speakers for this class. Today, we had two guest speakers: Eric Carlson, the CEO of Anthem Properties and Amielle Lake, CRO and Founder of Tagga.

I especially enjoyed Eric Carlson’s speech; he told us his story and journey through his career. Because he is the CEO of a large company, it was interesting to hear how he got to where he is today. Much to my surprise, he experienced many ups and downs.

His speech was very stimulating because as a student, I have doubts about how my future career will turn out. It was both inspirational and intimidating listening to his story. Firstly, it was comforting to know that he was able to continue going in business even when so many things went wrong along the way. However it was daunting but eye-opening because he was honest; things would not always go your way in business.

Overall, his speech was very informational and I felt that he taught us something that we don’t normally learn in a class lecture.

Source: http://www.anthemproperties.com/about/team/development

Monaco is a tiny city state located in Europe. A famous name in Monaco is Pastor — the Pastor family has been residing in Monaco for over a century, and has helped develop a significant amount of the country.

Gildo Pastor has always had an interest in cars therefore buying the car company Venturi in 2001. Pastor decided to focus on creating electric-powered sports vehicles, which came as a surprise to many people. Back in the early 2000’s no one would have thought that this combination could work.

The company Venturi sells a very limited amount of cars. I don’t understand why Pastor bought the company, as in the time when he purchased the company, it was not in a good state. He bought it so that he could improve its state, however I do not think that it was worth his time and money because to this day, Venturi still only produces their cars in the hundreds or less range. It is important to note that Monaco is almost so small that you would not need a car. The brand is also very exclusive to Monaco, and has not branched out globally despite interest from other countries such as America.

Article Source: http://business.blogs.cnn.com/2012/10/16/electrifying-ideas-to-give-monaco-a-new-spark/

Article Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2012/09/28/venturi-america-video-paris-2012/

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venturi_Automobiles

How important is the act of consuming alcohol and engaging in social activities with current or potential coworkers/bosses for career purposes? For ad sales representative of Forbes magazine, Terry Lavin, it was very important.

At one point in his career, he depended on partaking in social gatherings that involved drinking with coworkers to further his career. This helped his relationship with coworkers, making him likable at work and securing his job.

Many men in business feel the need to be avid drinkers to succeed and maintain their positions at work. Studies by social scientists support “the idea that nondrinkers have a harder time climbing the corporate ladder”.

I think there needs to be a level of professionalism kept at workplace gatherings outside of work. However, I see no harm in having some fun with coworkers and bosses, after all, they are people that we constantly spend time with. Might as well lighten the atmosphere, be comfortable, and have fun together.

Cheers!

Source: http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/01/feeling-the-pressure-to-drink-for-work/

In many car manufacturing companies, the employees are required to work overnight shifts to satisfy the demand of their consumers. This was the case in Asian countries, as they work hard to compete with American and European car manufacturers. However, South Korean companies, such as Kia and Hyundai, are now looking to end overnight shifts, something that their employees have wanted for a while now.

Kia

Although some people may think it’s unwise for companies like Kia and Hyundai to cut overnight shifts, as this may put a delay on production, but this is something that their employees have been requesting for some time. In class, I have learned that it important to satisfy not only your customers, but also your employees. Employee satisfaction leads to better and healthier work environments, therefore the happy employees will do their job better.

Response to Alex Chua’s post on Apple and their new iPhone 5

Alex stated that in the iPhone 5’s release, there have been many issues and controversies going on, such as claims that the iPhone 5 has brand new phones found with damages out of the box. Also, employees claim that they do not have the proper training and working conditions to produce good quality products, which in this case is the iPhone 5.

In response to this, from another article, Foxconn has denied rumours of any strikes that may have taken place at the factories, and also denied the rumours of the employees having rights such as vacation taken away from them. As for the reported damages, the demand for the iPhone 5 is continuing to grow.

Because Foxconn is known to be secretive about their company’s actions, it is up to consumers to decide whether they would like to support the company by purchasing the iPhone 5. However, the authenticity of their company’s business practise does not affect their profits due to the popularity of the iPhone 5, therefore it may not be an issue to Foxconn at all.

Source: http://appleinsider.com/articles/12/10/06/foxconn-denies-strike-at-iphone-5-factory-says-handset-production-on-schedule

Check it outtttt, you know time it is? MIDTERMS BROTHAS

Its yo girl C-KAY here to help you out in your time of need. I know y’all be thinkin’ “Oh shiet, we so screwed for midterms”

A recent study by Japan’s Hiroshima University in three different groups of students shows that adorable puppy or kitten pictures could make you work harder. The first group of students look at images of baby animals, one looked at adult animals, and one looked at pictures of food. The first group of students showed a 10 percent performance increase, followed by 5 percent from the second group, and hardly any increase shown by the third group.

The study showed that these images triggered positive emotion; therefore the students experienced an increase of focus and performance. Small things such as the environment of a workplace may have a large effect on students and workers. Although this may have seemed to be a silly topic of study, it has proven to make a positive difference in creating a productive work environment. With that said, here is your daily dose of cute for increased productivity:

Source: http://sourcefednews.com/2012/10/05/adorable-pictures-make-you-work-harder/