Monthly Archives: November 2014

Social entrepreneurs view problems in a different perspective, whilst governments and companies view it as unprofitable, they view it as a opportunity and potential profitability. There are different aspects of profitability, the majority view it financially; social entrepreneurs find their fulfilment in making the world a better place. The major difference between United Nations and social entrepreneurs is that one solve problems in the macro scale, carbon emissions by countries, peace treaties, potential war treats. However the other solves problems in the micro level.

Social entrepreneurs have the vision of  applying business concepts in aiding society, areas where the government have abandoned. Success stories such as micro finance brought families out of poverty, making them entrepreneurs  by providing them credit that was previously never available for their income group. The believe in bringing people out of poverty has dramatically increased the amount of social entrepreneurs that are actively providing for society. Acting in numbers is always better than executing it yourself; hence the network of social entrepreneurs have brought new heights to vast ideas being shared throughout the world. What caught me the most is the concept of transferability, business application in social entrepreneurship could be transferable and applied in a different country, no matter if its a first world nation or a developing country.

Therefore, businesses should recognise social entrepreneurs and partner with them to catalyse the benefits of social entrepreneurship. Hence, sharing the vision of building a sustainable society.

http://skollworldforum.org/about/what-is-social-entrepreneurship/

I came across this article on Mashable’s business blog, it states that children should be trained from young to attain a business mindset. There is no doubt that competitiveness in the business sector is increasing at phenomenal rates where admissions to business schools is getting literary impossible. Parents are constantly challenging the nation’s educational system in whether it would place their children in one of top ivy league schools.

Private schools and public schools are enhancing the educational system in order to adapt to the evolving society. Schools now require students to be more dynamic and quick witted to develop children to fit into today’s fast paced economy. Businesses demand employees to be innovative while retaining structural process of decision making. Schools are being commercialised where private schools offer international programs and local schools offering the traditional A level. However, isn’t education supposed to be standardised across the nation? Parents are willing to pay substantial amounts for private schools due to the fact that they can produce better statistics. Is it legal to manipulate the educational system? The problem lies where the costs of improving the local education is too costly for the government; hence it is diverted to parents having to send their kids to private schools. Why is this happening? Where is all our tax dollars going to? It’s unknown.

http://mashable.com/2014/11/09/girl-scouts-leadership/

After reading Sabena Quan-Hi’s blog, I have doubt the fact that companies are genuinely providing back to the society. In her blog, Sabena states that companies actions could be justified as long as they have something in return for society. In this case, Nestle was extracting a free resource and packaging to be sold for profit. In return for “free” water, Nestle provides mapping of underground water sources to the state government. Is it justifiable by providing information that isn’t useful to the state?

Instead of providing information about resources, companies should invest in the community, providing sustainable growth for the community and the company. They could provide scholarship programs for children who can’t afford tertiary education. This would increase equity in the society, potentially solving the poverty cycle. The social responsibility of a firm is an aspect of the firm  when customers consider the brand image, especially when it’s down to a multi million dollar firm. Applying the proper corporate social responsibility techniques would provide the firm with a competitive advantage against its rivals especially when their products are substitutes.

“Water You Stealing That For?”

After reading Amy Porterfield’s blog, “should I use click bait to increase engagement on facebook?” ,it changed my perception about the concept of social media network. Facebook was originally design as a social platform for friends and people around the globe to be connected and updated with current events. However the trend of companies adapting social media marketing has increased over the years, implementing advertisements over social behaviour or by referring the user to pages that their friend has recently viewed. Companies are developing different techniques to attract their target audience such as advertisements on gaming apps where the player has to view the advertisement before being allowed to advance into the game.

Technological advancements have made information transparent and more accessible through media platforms; hence making the barrier of intruding personal privacy permeable for companies. Its a fantasy for marketing firms as this information that wasn’t available for them a decade ago. They could better understand customer behaviour, preferences, hobbies; hence allowing companies to create products that customers would find appealing. However, the downside for users is the question whether if their information is protected by the ‘1988 data protection act’ or by simply click a bottom box at the corner of the ‘terms and conditions’ page allows companies to access your information. However, does every user know that their information is being shared or stored for marketing purposes? Companies always tend to hide their dark sides from the consumers to prevent conflicts, hence preventing unintended attention which I find unethical, information should be transparent especially in this century.

#38: Should You Use Click Bait to Increase Engagement on Facebook?