Picking Careers

As a first-year in Sauder, I am constantly bombarded by questions about my future: What business am I interested in? What will I major in? Will I go to graduate school?

As of right now I have no idea if I even want to pursue a career in business. I am enjoying my first year at Sauder, so assuming I meet the minimum requirements, I’ll continue on here next year. With that in mind, I have to begin choosing my career path, which is something I am not ready for.

Thankfully, Penelope Trunk simplifies the process in her blog and makes it less exhausting for me to choose a career. According to her, a career isn’t a job, but rather it’s a lifestyle. I should love what I do, not count down the minutes until I go home. I can’t overcommit myself–instead I should test many options and see what fits. Finally, I shouldn’t believe the hype of the job. I need to learn for myself what I enjoy and hate, and it shouldn’t matter what that job is, if it feels right to be a garbage man, a garbage man I should be.

I should be happy with the career choices I make in life 🙂

From Enterprize to Energy Aware

Energy Aware is a local company that was created at the Sauder School of Business. In 2005, the company, which was comprised of a mix between B-Com and Engineering students, entered and won the Enterprize Business Plan Competition. The company’s product is a device (PowerTab) which gives feedback on how much money is being spend on electricity in the home. This information is instantaneous, and the PowerTab can even be set to alert the homeowner when they reach certain rates of electricity use.

The PowerTab Display

I was fortunate enough to meet Janice Cheam, President and CEO of Energy Aware, who spoke about entrepreneurship in class. While I already knew that her company had won the Enterprize Competition, I was surprised to learn of some of the struggles she faced following the initial success. Janice was unable to go to the banks for a loan because they were not willing to invest in such a risky project. Instead she was forced to find Angel Investors, which meant giving up full ownership of the company in exchange for financial backing. This is an example of when an entrepreneur has to relinquish stock of their company, rather than just take a bank loan.

A New Target Audience

Target brings a new identity to the retail business in Canada

Recently the American company Target announced their occupation of 220 Zellers stores in Canada. This gigantic takeover is creating new competition in the Canadian retailer market, particularly between Target and Walmart. Shasin Hamal believes that Target should establish themselves in different locations that are more accessible to lower-income families. The competition doesn’t matter because of the steady Canadian economy and thus all the companies will remain successful.

I believe that Target will not bring competition to the Canadian retail industry, but rather it will recharge it with positive energy. An article in Canadian Business Online states: “Canada is currently littered with sad-sack shopping plazas formerly anchored by Zellers. You can recognize them by the peeling paint and the potholes in the empty parking lots. But come this spring, those lots will once again be full, the cash registers will sing, the aisles will buzz with eager shoppers. I would imagine the other stores in those plazas are looking forward to this.” I believe the Canadian market will pick up rapidly with the arrival of Target. Retailers will share customers, while thousands of workers are being hired, boosting the Canadian economy further.

Mickey Mouse: The Jedi Continue

In a blockbuster transaction that rocked the ‘house of mouse’, Disney has purchased Lucasfilm Ltd, and along with it the Star Wars franchise. The deal, worth over 4 billion dollars in cash and stock, comes on the heals of Disney’s recent purchases of Pixar in 2006 and Marvel in 2009. The Financial Post reports: “Disney already has a great portfolio and this adds one more,” said Morningstar analyst Michael Corty. “They don’t have any holes, but their past deals have been additive.” While Lucasfilm productions historically have large grosses in box offices, the addition of the company will boost sales of toys and other products for Disney. 

I believe this is a chance to reinvent two of the most classic series in Hollywood: Star Wars and Indiana Jones. The name of each film alone is enough to make a profit, but the quality has been downhill over the past few years, particularly that of the most recent Indiana Jones film, which was received poorly by critics. Disney can inject new life, through new production, direction, or acting, and recreate the popular series, much like those of James Bond and The Pink Panther.