One of the key objectives of the UN is to achieve international co-operation in solving economic, social, cultural and humanitarian problems. However, even if the United Nations were full funded, it would not rule out the importance of social enterprise and the Arc initiative. Although a fully funded UN could provide endless financial support economically, the communities receiving the support must be able to sustain themselves in order to be economically and socially capable in the long term.  In the case of fashion label Osel-Duro, the social enterprise could receive financial aid from the UN to perhaps contract more tailors or more dyers. However, the company’s rejection rate of 20% would still remain, and the company would remain to be inefficient. With the help of the Arc Initiative, the company would be then be  able to take a different direction solve these problems. The combination of the arc initiative with a social enterprise like Osel Duro, the company benefits with increased profits and growth, while creating jobs within the company. At this point the United Nations financial support would be most beneficial to the community, as it could serve hasten the improved business plans of the Social Enterprises

A recent study by employment website Monster, has found that college students would accept 7% less starting salary to work for companies with strong corporate cultures and positive work environments. After reading a blog post by hiring website Recruitifi, I have learned that not only do companies with strong cultures have large impacts on recruiting, but also, they seem to have much lower turnover rates. As of 2012, 18% of graduates listed company culture as top priority when searching for employment and after seeing the corporate culture of Zappos, it is  understandable as to why a more enjoyable work experience results in the company reducing turnover and retaining top talent. As seen in the Zappos video showed during class, the employees of a company with strong culture and engaging environment were less likely to leave their jobs, and also had higher productivity rates. According to Recruitifi’s blog, the reduced turnover rate then means the companies would not need to spend time and money in attempt to replace workers, and therefore increase the profit per employee. As someone currently searching for a job, this blog has definitely allowed me to take on the perspective of an employer and understand the difficulties a corporation or employer faces when choosing candidates. For those of us who usually sit at the other end of the interview table, i highly recommend check out Recruitifi’s blog!

Remember when the ALS Ice Bucket challenge got so big even the President of UBC participated? For those of you who don’t know, the Ice Bucket Challenge was a video revolution involving approximately 440 million users that raised $94 million for the ALS association. The platform for the Ice Bucket Challenge was mainly Facebook, who’s video product was greatly driven by the ALS challenge. Although Facebook video’s value proposition was originally intended for users to conveniently post about daily life and share content from other platforms, the popularity of the ALS challenge has allowed the company to compete directly with video giant Youtube for ad revenue. In fact, Facebook may be considering the adoption of video ads,  and while this may seem appealing, I don’t believe the implementation of video ads is a step in the right direction for the company. Currently, the layout of Facebook allows for videos to be automatically played when scrolling down the homepage and unlike Youtube, videos like the Ice Bucket challenge are no more than than a one or two minutes in length. It simply wouldn’t make sense for a user to sit through an advertisement for the sake of watching such a short video. The implementation of video ads could result in users searching for alternatives to post such videos, and besides, aren’t we annoyed enough by those ads at the beginning of Youtube videos already?

In the spirit of upcoming Group Business Presentations, Kevin O’Leary, the most notorious dragon of CBC’s Dragons Den, has stopped by to give our fellow classmates some advice and pointers on their upcoming presentations! Being a fund manager, entrepreneur, and avid investor, Kevin has  seen thousands of pitches, and today he has helped us identify the top 3 secrets to successful pitches:

1. Clarity of Ideas: Kevin states that it is important for a team to be able to articulate their idea in 60 seconds or less, as it must be simple for the listener to understand. Personally, if i were an investor, i would never invest in something with ambiguity and therefore, clarity and simplicity in the explanation is very important for presentations and pitches.

2. Numbers: As TAs have explained in tutorials, the presenters should have numbers and calculations to back up their presentations. Kevin O’Leary also agrees as he states that winners on Dragon’s Den almost always know their numbers, as it is what sparks the interest of investors.

3. Leadership and Teamwork: Although this may not be directly beneficial to comm 101 presentations, Kevin also emphasizes the need to explain why you are the right person to carry out your business plan. Aspiring entrepreneurs should be capable and confident that his or her knowledge and/or experience in the field will allow for the successful execution of the business plan.

Good luck to everybody on the comm 101 presentations! Hopefully we can all earn an “investment” from Rob and Tamar!

A few weeks ago, the news of American fast food giant Burger King acquiring Canada’s very own Tim Hortons spurred discussion within our Comm 101 class. Despite weighing both benefits and drawbacks of the acquisition, the class never came across the possibility of Canadian layoffs due to cost cutting. Disappointingly, a recent study from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives says that this could very much be the case. The study has reasoned that 3G Capital, the private equity firm acquiring Tim Hortons has not assured any benefits to Canadians. Furthermore, the record of 3G capital suggests that the firm’s debt financing could result in the layoff of more than 44% of it’s corporate staff. Personally, i do not see the acquisition of Tim Horton as a benefit to Canadians. Although the acquisition could result in access to more capital or resources for Tim Hortons, 3G capital could very well change the quality of its coffee beans in order to reduce expenses, possibly impacting the company’s value proposition. According to the report from the Centre for Policy Alternatives, other possible methods of reducing expenses could include shuffling finances to reduce taxes in Canada. Over the first five years of the acquisition, this could cost the Canadian government up to $667 million dollars and when combined with the layoffs, it is clear that the deal is not set with the best interests of Canadians in mind.

Nowadays, an increasing number of companies built around community habits rather than superior products, many recent startups have now been given the name “Smartups“. What exactly are Smartups? Smartups are startups with business models based around “smarter” use of existing resources to reduce the population’s dependency on resource consumption. These companies generally operate housing, transportation, and food industries, all of which use large amounts of natural resources. Perhaps the most most notable example of a  smartup is Airbnb, a website allowing members to rent out accommodation. In the case of Airbnb, users of the website are able to earn fees by  sharing their flats, and while doing so,  they inadvertently change the community by efficiently using living space and housing. Providing shelter while generating income for the community allows  Airbnb  to enhancing social and economical conditions which ultimately creates shared value for the company and community. Furthermore, Airbnb is also environmentally sustainable  as their properties generate 63% less energy and 68% less greenhouse gases per night than hotels. By essentially being the world’s most ecological hotel chain, the company certainly possess a valuable point of difference. Currently, the company generates revenue by charging a 3-6% service fee for it’s bookings and is valued at a whopping $10 billion by TPC capital. Through the success of Airbnb, we may just see “smartups” leading the way in upcoming startup companies!

With court cases constantly ongoing between the First Nations and our governments, Premier Christy Clark recently addressed First Nations representatives in regards to the alternative solutions to their conflicts. Christy Clark insisted that cooperation and negotiation between the two groups is the best way to move forward, which is something I agree with. I believe that solving problems through negotiations would save our province and taxpayers a substantial amount of money. Furthermore, negotiation could prove to be much more effective than the long and dragged out court cases. For example, with B.C Hydro’s upcoming Site C project would be a good situation to exercise negotiation and cooperation. While it is evident that BC will need more clean energy sooner or later, the construction of a dam would not only severely damage the First Nation’s property, but also create hostility between the government and First Nations. A feasible solution could be for Christy Clark to implement her plans of negotiation and consider alternative sources of energy such as wind power. This way, not only would our future energy needs be satisfied, but the concerns of First Nations would be addressed too. However, while the plans of negotiation are easy to create, both the Government and the First Nations must be lenient and understanding to each other’s concerns in order for both sides to truly cooperate.

Like Tristan, I believe there is an important link between a brand’s image and a product’s success. In his blog, he analyses that the reason Kia’s  luxury vehicle, the K900 has fallen flat on it’s face is due to Kia not positioning itself as a luxury brand. Why would anyone buy a $50,000 Kia, when they could indulge themselves in a Mercedes E-class? However, while it is true that brand positioning is important, I believe the reason behind the K900’s poor sales is not solely because Kia is not a luxury brand, but also, Kia’s poor brand recognition and small market share. For example, while Toyota does not carry the image of a luxury brand, it is certainly a reputable brand. This allows a product like its $80,000 Land Cruiser, to trump the sales of the “luxurious” Range Rover in countries such as Australia.  Currently, Kia is not in a position to introduce a luxury vehicle and take on two market segments. First, Kia should definitely address it’s market share and brand image in the mass market segment of the automotive industry. This may be done through product differentiation or rebranding, but introducing new luxury vehicles surely does not help with the cause.

Blackberry, the company that’s been struggling to make it’s mark in the smartphone industry in recent years, have recently introduced their latest and greatest- the Passport. Sporting an untraditional design and aimed at the business market, the Passport sold all of it’s 200,000 units just two days after the launch of the device. Although the units sold are certainly no match for the newly released iPhone 6, the device was once again sold out immediately after the Blackberry online store was restocked. However, in today’s business world, many firms implement a “bring your own device” policy, in which means the Blackberry may have trouble competing with the  sea of iPhones and Samsung’s. I believe Blackberry’s traditional selling point, which is the physical keyboard, is no longer a value proposition to most consumers. Text input on touch screen keyboards nowadays are accurate enough that a physical keyboard not only takes away from the screen real estate of a device, but also makes the device seem old fashioned. While the Passport is certainly a good start for Blackberry, I would suggest that a shift in the companies priorities. Rather than trying to capitalize on an old and unwanted technology, Blackberry should go back to the Business Model Canvas if it wishes to be the dominant force it was 10 years ago.

Due to the release of investigator Carmen Segarra’s tapes showing the regulators of Goldman Sachs participating in a culture of deference, the practices and ethics of Wall Street are once again showing it’s dark side. Regulators were found to be afraid of provoking the financial institutions and therefore lenient towards the investment banks shady practices.  For example, despite concerns raised by the New York Fed team in regards to Goldman Sachs’ deal with Spanish bank Banco Santander, Segarra’s, tapes revealed that the regulators did not want to press the banks and have their inquisitions seen as criticisms. According to Senator Elizabeth Warren, when regulators put protecting banks from accountability ahead of protecting citizens from risky and illegal behaviours, the entire economy becomes extremely vulnerable. We certainly don’t need a rendition of the 2008 stock market crash.

After reading Elaine Nguyen’s blog on The Wolf on Wall Street and watching the movie myself, I can see why Wall Street doesn’t always like to play fair. As Elaine stated in her blog, sometimes there isn’t a clear difference between ethical and unethical practices, especially when such large sums of money are involved.  However,  with such a large impact on the economy, Wall Street bankers and government regulators should work together to ensure the health of our economy and the financial well being of the economy