Through LinkedIn, I recently stumbled upon a post reiterating the meaning of the word “culture.”

To briefly summarize, the passage explains that the culture in a work environment is determined by actions. It lists and asks questions regarding how many times one has done something empowering or inspiring. In contrast, it also inquires situations where one has acted condescendingly. Basically, I interpreted the fact that a company’s culture is considered “healthy” if leaders are able to carry out their commitments, take their staff’s insight into consideration to allow ideas to bounce off of them, and if there is an honest environment.

In COMM101, we have pondered over the ideas of ethics, value propositions and brand positioning, market research, performance management, and most recently, organizational behaviour . These points form a primary basis for the culture of a company and how they are perceived. So what makes a company “good?” My belief is that internally, the staff must work effectively and efficiently. I presume that when one is working with their peers, they must take empowering measures and motivate the team with open mindedness rather than creating tension. Getting “good results” doesn’t simply mean maximizing profit. A positive culture of a company must take its employees into account. The benefit of creating a geniune culture is that workers will often translate that similar behaviour when they are interacting with customers, which ultimately leads to a stronger brand name for the company as a whole.

That is how every company should manage their work force.

Works Cited:

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/article/20141010023547-2236432-your-company-s-culture-is-you?trk=object-title

As a frequent online consumer myself, I have decided to respond to my classmate Alfred’s post regarding the growth in the demand of products between the late night and early morning time span.

The innovation of technology grants effortless access for individuals. Whether we like it or not, consumers are getting lazier. Why would one go to a store if they can simply type in a link on their browser at any time of the day and make a purchase? Personally, I’ve had incidents where I have talked myself out of going to the store to buy a product due to the lack to time I have during a given day. This is one of the “pains” that brands can integrate and relieve. Like Alfred stated, “burnt out parents” tend to complete their online shopping for their children during late nights after work when their kids tend to be asleep.

As explained in my classmate’s article, expanding hours is an effective idea. However, to reduce costs, companies must take advantage of the online channel. Essentially, it is crucial for companies to add an addition channel and revenue stream where shoppers can purchase their products online in addition to the store or else they will not grow with the economy. This is why video stores are rapidly shutting down. People are naturally using online resources instead and in order for a company to continue to stay in business, they must address customers’ mindsets and how they rapidly reshape.

Works Cited:

http://www.theguardian.com/money/2014/oct/10/internet-online-shopping-30-per-cent-rise-midnight-6am-john-lewis

Picture source: http://zarrtech.net/the-ins-and-outs-of-the-online-shopping-experience/

The “Shaytards” may appear as a prominent word to many. This family of seven has been posting daily videos on YouTube broadcasting their lives for over five years. The father of the family, Shaycarl, has astonished me with his ability to integrate the world of business within this hobby of his, which undoubtedly has become his career.

If one rewinds back to half a decade ago, they would have learned that this family tried to fulfill just the bare necessities in life. To many, posting videos on YouTube seemed like a terrible alternative to getting a “real job” and Shaycarl, an entrepreneur himself,  is the epidome of the so-called risk taker we have discussed in COMM101.

The YouTube channel’s creativity has allowed Shaycarl to make use of his fame and display the positive effects of working behind with a team of people: his family, his co-workers, and his online audience. As an integral part of founding Maker Studios, a corporation that helps with the production and distribution of videos, in 2009, this has triggered the news of Disney buying the company for 500 million dollars earlier this year. Shaycarl is getting part of those shares, of course.

With the support system that he has had, companies selling products including but not limited to food, athletic apparel, and audiobooks have been striving to get the “Shaytards” to let their items appear in their vlogs for promotional purposes.

It’s unbelievable how a single camera can prompt such a massive alteration in one’s life.

Picture source: http://www.hlntv.com/video/2014/02/19/shaytards-youtube-stars