Are you a risk-taker? Creative thinker? Efficient multi-tasker? Are you able to step outside of your niche, face failure and persevere? Elon Musk, entrepreneur of multiple startups and currently CEO of Tesla certainly is.

Elon Musk co-founded an online payment service, X.com which later led to Paypal. Elon then innovated SpaceX, a corporation which gained insight from NASA. Thereafter, Elon Musk ventured into Tesla Motors, the electric car system market, SolarCity, as well as many other startups.

According to the blog post from my COMM 101 classmate Fin Boothroyd, “ Entrepreneurs are a unique breed who battle through adversity to achieve their goals.” At face value, Elon Musk’s story only includes innovative success. However, in reality he faced many obstacles. Elon Musk once stated “If something’s important enough, you should try. Even if you – the probable outcome is failure”.

Elon Musk continues to encounter failure and complication while working with one of the most innovative companies in the world, Tesla. Specifically, Tesla is facing challenges with the low production on the Model 3 and Model x. The company uncovered a problem which stemmed from the production of batteries. Tesla’s director of battery engineering, Kon Wagner left the company, leading consumers to question the Model 3 product. Elon Musk announced, “the success or failure of the Model 3 could make or break the company.”

Tesla is facing other issues related to the safety precautions of their products. The “Insurance Institute for Highway Safety downgraded Tesla’s Model S from the top spot on its safety list”. The IIHS simulated a 40 mph collision which resulted in an ”acceptable” rating for the Model S. The seatbelt in the S model did not prevent the drivers head from smashing against the steering wheel. Tesla promotes the Model S car to be the safest car, however Tesla did not receive an optimal safety rating. Tesla’s complications are up to the company and the CEO to fix; Elon Musk must resolve the companies issues and rebound back to success. As evidenced by his previous ability to overcome obstacles, I am sure Elon Musk is up for the challenge.

As Fin Boothroyd states “the ones who create and make disruptive waves that shake the industry are often the ones who have battled through hardship in their own life” result in the most successful entrepreneurs. I believe hardship does not specifically have to be related to one’s own personal life, but can be intertwined through his/her struggles by innovating in specific fields driving towards success.

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“HQ2 will be the second Amazon headquarters in North America. We are looking for a location with strong…talent—particularly in software development and related fields—as well as a stable and business-friendly environment.”  – Amazon

Amazon has received 238 proposals from across North America and is determining the most attractive location. Each proposal submitted has a creative proposition. Vancouver has submitted a proposal of its own. Vancouver may seem like the perfect fit because of its educated workforce, west coast location and its well established trading relationships with countries like China. China  has a competing company, Alibaba,  and Amazon’s penetration in Alibaba’s marketplace will be a strategic competitive initiative.  Amazon’s main headquarters are located in Seattle, “Proximity to Seattle is something nobody else in Canada can lay claim to,”(News, 2017). The  creation of the second headquarters promises 50,000 jobs for the chosen city and will subsequently increase the city’s overall economy.  A decision for Amazon to locate in Vancouver may seem exciting and profitable but when further dissected may not be the best location, especially for us Vancouverites. Vancouver may be good for Amazon, but is Amazon good for Vancouver?

The 50,000 more jobs is attractive, however, realistically may be difficult to fill.  Vancouver’s unemployment rates is low and to fill these positions qualified individuals will need to migrate to Vancouver. Vancouver is already struggling with traffic congestion, inefficient transit systems, unaffordable housing and a geographical location bounded by mountains and ocean water.Where will these new employees live? How will they commute?

In reference to “The Upshot” Blog Post, New York will not win the bid for HQ2 because of its high costs of living. Therefore, Vancouver will struggle much the same as New York due to our high cost of living.

Integrating the PEST strategizer into Vancouver’s proposition for Amazon could have  assessed whether it was  in Vancouver’s best interest to actually enter the competition. The PEST strategizer would have uncovered specific pitfalls such as possible political ramifications. Economically, Amazon is an industry disruptor and would puncture local retail operations – destroying Vancouver’s unique businesses. Socially, Amazon will add  stress on housing, transportation, and population density. Vancouver already is home to strong technological development and Amazon would detrimentally affect local companies as Amazon could afford to lure top talent away.

Other cities have offered huge incentives to attract Amazon. “Vancouver’s bid plans will not be released until a decision on the second home city has been announced by Amazon sometime in 2018” (Chan, 2017). The commission only disclosed that the incentives focused on real estate, health care and labour. Time will tell which proposal will win the second headquarters of Amazon and how it will affect you and me. 

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A brand which incorporates value in society attracts consumers. Dove, a brand known for promoting values like natural beauty, confidence and positive characteristics recently released a campaign video in contradiction of these values. Prior, Dove’s Self Esteem Campaign had positively reached out to 20 million young people across the globe. The Dove Self Esteem Project specifically stated that everyone deserves “to reach their full potential”, yet due to “low body confidence and anxieties over appearance” many do not reach this potential. From a consumer perspective, the Dove Campaign motivated me to embrace exactly who I am meant to be. Their video of a model with no makeup transforming into a covergirl demonstrated how media harmfully enhances and distorts individuals; this unattainable portrayal of beauty intensifies insecurities in viewers own appearances. The most impactful advertisement for me consisted of young girls describing what they each wished they could look like. The shorter girls wanted to be taller and the darker skinned girls wanted lighter coloured skin. This add portrayed how society has convinced girls to want to look a certain way instead of how they were born.

On October 10, 2017 Dove released a clip on their company’s facebook page which was completely contradictory to everything the Self Esteem project had originally campaigned. The add showed a black woman removing her shirt to unravel a white woman underneath. This specific add is reminiscent of soap advertisements from “the 19th century that showed black people scrubbing their skin to become white” (Reuters 2017). 

After researching Dove’s marketing strategies, I was appalled to discover similar previous ads. During 2011, three women were placed side by side, one with darker skin under the heading “before” and two white women under the heading “after”; a portrayal of what occurs before and after using their product, suggesting whiter skin is preferred. Is Dove hiding racism behind all of their self-esteem boosting confidence campaigns? What is Dove really expressing through their value proposition to the customer segment? Dove had no valid explanation of the outfall, “an image we recently posted on Facebook missed the mark in representing women of color thoughtfully. We deeply regret the offense it caused” 

Dove’s differences and points of parity are what makes the company stand out from the rest of soap companies. It’s value system has beneficially separated itself from other companies in the past, but will this recently released clip plummet the brand popularity? Elon Musk an entrepreneur stated, “Brand is just a perception, and perception will match reality over time. Sometimes it will be ahead, other times it will be behind. But ‘brand’ is simply the collective impression some have about a product”. My impression of the Dove brand has certainly changed.

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The article “EpiPen price furor heats up in U.S.” as reported by CBC News illustrates the necessity for governments to regulate drug pricing. In the United States, Mylan Pharmaceuticals, a private enterprise increased the price of EpiPen devices to maximize profits; a strategy common in the marketplace. The new US pricing is unaffordable to many individuals with severe allergies and subsequently will lead to loss of life. The increase in price of the EpiPen 2-pak could decrease consumers’ ability to keep an extra life saving product in their pockets. Society must prioritize life ahead of profits; companies that provide a life saving product for emergencies should not be allowed to uncontrollably bump up prices. “The 400 per cent spike in the price of EpiPen devices” (CBC News) is outrageous and unacceptable. Government intervention is necessary for communities to be protected from avaricious producers. 

Canada was not affected by the 400% increase in price for the EpiPen because of existing regulations. “We feel that everyone should have access to life-saving medication and that cost shouldn’t be a barrier” (Povolo, CBC news). In the US, if life saving drugs are not subject to regulations,  suppliers will be tempted to maximize prices.

This is not an isolated incident. In 2015, Martin Shkreli, founder of Turing Pharmaceuticals purchased the license for Daraprim and thereafter raised its price from $13.50 to $750.00 per pill. Lack of ethical business practices was pervasive in his dealings and he was “arrested by the FBI after a federal investigation involving his former hedge fund and pharmaceutical company he previously headed” (Nate Raymond). Situations similar to Shrkeli’s and Mylan Pharmaceuticals will continue to arise unless regulated. Some like Martin Shkreli may argue that maximizing profits on drugs helps patients in the long run as more profits will further research development. More investors will be attracted to the sector and more effective drugs will potentially be produced. But how many lives will this cost due to unaffordable pharmaceuticals? How can society be sure  these excessive payments will fund research and not instead line pockets of greedy investors? Government regulations protects society, creates barriers and helps to deter investors with questionable business ethics  from entering the pharmaceutical industry.    

Sources:

Martin Shkreli, Who Raised Drug Prices from $13.50 to $750, Arrested in Securities Fraud Probe. (n.d.). Retrieved September 12, 2017, from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/martin-shkreli-who-raised-drug-prices-from-13-50-to-750-arrested-in-securities-fraud-probe/

C.News, C.(2016, August 24). Drug price hikes can damage company reputations: White House on EpiPen furor. Retrieved September 12, 2017, from http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/epipen-price-1.3734214

Japsen, B. (2016, August 25). Doctors Demand Mylan Lower EpiPen Price For Everybody. Retrieved September 12, 2017, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/brucejapsen/2016/08/25/pressure-mounts-on-mylan-from-doctors-to-lower-epipen-price/#3266baa23b1a

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