Sam Lotfizanjani's Blog

Jacob MacKellar is a proud owner of MacKellar Farms, a family farm located southwest of London, Ontario. He plans on expanding the supply of his edamame crops in hope of becoming the main producer of edamame across Canada.

Jacob MacKellar in edamame crops

I highly suggest that Mr. MacKellar hires an expert consultant to review the specific barriers of entry into this market, especially since the majority of edamame consumed in Canada is currently being imported overseas from China. Something that stands out for me with MacKellar Farms and their edamame’s is that they are 100% free of GMO’s which stands out as their point of difference(POD).

Personally I am all for Mr. MacKellar’s idea of expansion as I predict that the profits will overcome the opportunity cost. I can testify to the success of small business’ growing into huge companies, since I spent the last year volunteering for the West Van Chamber Of Commerce. There I worked with an excellent group of individuals, which promoted, supported and enhanced growth in business’ within the community. That experience has given me a certain skill set in identifying opportunities where companies such as MacKellar Farms should take certain risks if they wish to develop in the future.

Sources:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/small-business/sb-growth/sustainability/family-farm-stakes-future-on-edamame/article21482068/

Home

http://www.statcan.gc.ca/ca-ra2006/articles/snapshot-portrait-eng.htm

http://www.farmfoodcare.org/news/27-farm-food-care/media/news-releases/2013/309-ontario-farm-meeting-rising-demand-for-locally-grown-edamame

http://www.facesoffarming.ca/index.php/jacob-mackellar-mackellar-farms/

http://www.thesweetbeet.com/you%E2%80%99re-already-eating-gmo-food-and-don%E2%80%99t-even-know-it/

As I analyzed the methods of  social entrepreneurs and the United Nations, I realized that although they both aim for a general goal, the way they achieve that goal is tremendously different.

The UN has become known as a global organization that aids countries around the world, with an overall objective of peacekeeping. In my mind it is very clear that the missions that they run generally do not require their volunteers/workers to act upon the needs of each specific individual. It has been proven evident to me that they supply countries with abundances of resources, but leave the citizens to figure out ways to develop those resources into long term solutions. I believe the main issue for these people that are embedded in poverty is that they lack the knowledge to know how to efficiently use the “fully funded” aid drops of the UN.

UN Cargo Plane Drops Food Crates

That is where I see an immense difference in how social entrepreneurs work, by interacting closely with smaller communities to distinguish the core problems that each community suffers from. I feel that the difference between social entrepreneurs and me is that they see the opportunities for change and innovation in these communities before it even happens, while my view on the scenario would need some clear results of improvement before I would believe that helping these citizens would even be possible.

Social Entrepreneurs Hold Meeting In Rwanda

So that is why we need social enterprises and programs such as the Arc Initiative, to provide struggling people with more than short term fixes, but to supply them with the tools and knowledge for their long term growth and achievements!

Sources:

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

http://www.sauder.ubc.ca/Global_Reach/ARC_Initiative

http://www.un.org/en/

In response to this news article on BNN, Home Depot has publicly stated that hackers have successfully obtained around 53 million email addresses over a spam of a couple months.

This shocking news has caused panic and stress for the company and its customers, leaving law enforcement to launch an avid investigation, to prevent such events from occurring again.

I have followed such hacker groups fairly well over the past few years, and have made it clear in my mind that the internet is no safe place to store personal information, regardless of how “security safe” the websites or in this case emails pretend to be. Groups such as Anonymous and Chaos Computer Club have been hacking corporations, banks, websites and anything else that you could think  of for many years now.

Chaos Computer Club- Logo

At this rate, I believe that these hacker groups will continue to hackinto almost anything they desire to, such as Home Depot’s internal hardwares. Although some may say that improvements in security and anti-virus systems are being made every day, it should also be recognized that groups like Anonymous will advance in their techniques as well.

Anonymous- Logo

So what is there to do? Are we hopeless in fighting against these groups?

Sources:

http://www.vice.com/en_ca/read/anonymous-hacked-bank-of-america

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaos_Computer_Club

http://www.bnn.ca/News/2014/11/7/Home-Depot-hacked-53-million-e-mail-addresses-stolen-.aspx

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anonymous_(group)

Ryan McCaig recently posted an article titled, “Shomi the money“, on November 8th.

Ryan actively talks about a new company called Shomi, that has partnered up with two highly recognized communications and media companies: Rogers and Shaw. Although Ryan believes that Shomi will be overpowered and slowly diminished due to its giant competitor Netflix, I feel that the result will be otherwise.

Shomi Ad- On Rogers Website

I truly understand that Netflix has established itself as a worldwide provider for internet streaming media, but that does not necessarily mean that other competitors cannot compete against it for subscribers. Even Netflix once started out small when it first came to Canada in September of 2010.

In my opinion, Shomi’s path to success is going to revolve around them jumping on the back of Rogers and Shaw allowing them to use their already popularized brand name to connect directly with their massive customer segments. In my mind Rogers is a monopoly, that continues to overcharge its customers while maintaining its demand for their products and services. This key fact is why Shomi can become a serious competitor in the near future with the help of its new partnership.

Source:

http://blogs.ubc.ca/ryanmccaig/2014/11/08/shomi-the-money/

https://shomi.rogers.com/?asc_refid=shomi

http://ir.netflix.com/index.cfm

Michael D’Alimonte’s post, “A bunch of frat bros are trying to start a new movement on Instagram“, published on August 11th, 2014, intrigued my interest as a very controversial topic.

In this article, Michael identifies the numerous members of different fraternities around Montreal that have used social media to express the true importance that their individual fraternities have on them in their lives.

Greek Village-UBC

Weather in Montreal or even here at UBC, fraternities have been stereotyped with the same “douchey frat guys” look. As a current member in a Fraternity at UBC, I can personally relate to the message that Michael is trying to portray in his blog. The modern day fraternity has changed miraculously from what most people perceive it as.

My fraternity has given me a certain responsibility which I hold upon myself, alongside the permanent bonds that I have created through this process have given me and will continue to give me better characteristics and skills through life. The connections and social network that I have developed around me has made me a more interactive person, and resulted in my increased involvement in the community.

Although fraternities still “party hard”, they should be recognized as prestigious organizations that have members that take pride in being gentlemen that achieve great accomplishments both individually and as a group.

This is something that should not be taken away from us.

Source:

http://www.mtlblog.com/2014/08/a-bunch-of-frat-bros-are-trying-to-start-the-whyweneedfrat-movement-on-instagram/#

Deacon Thornberry published an article on October 5th, with the headline, “Canadian District Goes to school on Concussions“.

Deacon’s article exemplifies the fact that concussions should be taught to students, for them to become aware of its detrimental side effects and how to deal with them.

I myself believe that the problem could be solved in another way, instead of primarily focusing on educating students about concussions. During my childhood and even to this day, I have always looked up to professional athletes when playing or watching sports. Their image of success is what most, if not all young athletes try to follow to become the best that they can.

Damaged brain activity due to a concussion 

For this reason, the solution should be for professional leagues such as the NBA, NFL, NHL, MLB and others to continue to develop new rules that prevent concussions for even happening in the first place. If these major leagues begin the movement, then everyone else will follow their footsteps.

The NHL took a great step in this direction introducing the “new rule on head hits designed to curb concussions“, showing positive results according to the study by Toronto researchers. Although I also agree with Deacon’s point on educating students about concussions, I personally believe that enacting new rules in making sports safer should be the first objective in dealing with concussions.

Sources:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/hockey/rule-changes-reduce-hockey-head-injuries-study/article5915531/

http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=539622

http://blogs.ubc.ca/deaconthornberry/2014/10/05/canadian-district-goes-to-school-on-concussions/

The newly declared tribal park region near Williams Lake has caused disputes between the First Nations government and the Taseko mine company on the upcoming plans for billion dollar mining project. It is present in my mind that the preservation of the richly inhabited land of the park should be of greater importance to the provincial and federal government. Although the mining project can bring in great economic prosperity for the region, it will also have its side effects on the environment and the ecosystem.

     The cultural rituals for the preservation of their lands prevent Taseko, from successfully claiming rights to begin the project. These cultural trends have had an effect on the companies initial business plans. Without the Tsilhqot’in people standing up for the rights to the ownership of their lands, environmental damage at this tribal park will be used as a precedent in future cases. This would allow other industry giants to enact other claims for lands that could deteriorate the beautiful land, which we have come to cherish.

Work Cited:

PYNN, LARRY. “Tsilhqot’in Set to Declare Site of New Prosperity Mine a Tribal Park.” Www.vancouversun.com.                    Vancouver Sun, 11 Sept. 2014. Web. 05 Oct. 2014.

With the new proposal by Fifa to ban the third-party ownership (TPO), teams are starting to plan ahead for the change that will occur without this regulation. The TPO was an influential tactic used by football clubs all around the world in the past decades. As the prices for buying players went through the roof, the owners of these teams had to resort to wealthy investors outside their respected organizations to provide them with the necessary funds to make joint agreements for players. Without the TPO clubs would not be able to purchase many of the players that they own right now due to a lack of financial support. I tend to strongly agree with the decision strike down the TPO’s of players, as it will result in a more evenly structured league causing a rise in the competition. With this teams will have a more balanced set of players, distributing the skilled and talented, hence expensive players throughout the clubs.  In overall this process will be beneficial to Fifa, although there will be many controversies along the 3 to 4 year span for this ban to become in full effect.   This will cause players to become fully motivated to the team that they play for. Hopefully resulting in more dedication and loyalty to both the organization and the teammates, which they train and play for over the spam of their contracts.

Work Cited:

Conway, Richard. “Fifa to Ban Third-party Ownership.” BBC Sport. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Oct. 2014.

Image Link:    http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ieb0hN4k4M0/TcnMu-JWIOI/AAAAAAAAAe8/HVOD0P4jFMg/s1600/FIFA_Logo.png

It has finally been reported that Stollerys men’s store in the heart of Toronto’s shopping district is closing down. The monumental 114-year-old building is now ready to become the home of a new company. With the new market rise in men’s wear, the increasing demand for these goods has caused companies in competition to battle each other for customers. As profits rise, it causes producers to increase their supply and invest more money into the marketing of the exponentially growing men’s wear department.

            The huge powerful corporations such as Harry Rosen, Ralph Lauren, Marc Jacobs, Lacoste and other have began to narrow down the competition in the industry by attracting the customers and closing down the relatively smaller stores such as Stollerys. With a new way of broadcasting their products these well-known names have popularized the use of their online websites for the use of purchasing products. Such advancements in sales are contributing to increasing profits for the big name brands.

This lasting effect has caused smaller companies to become more innovative in their approaches in order to survive, by marketing and planning the future of their companies. I myself used to live in Toronto 5 years ago, and the growth in the men’s wear market from then to now is beyond what I could have imagined.

Work Cited:

Strauss, Marina. “Iconic Upscale Men’s Wear Store to Close in Toronto.”The Globe and Mail. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Oct. 2014.

The developing idea of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has become a crucial part of the functioning of all business corporations. The constant struggle for organizations to develop new innovative ways to incorporate CSR into their respective businesses has increased in the recent years.

This concept is talked about in the article by Harvard Business Review as this new social conduct has presumed to be very crucial to the success and growth of companies. Corporations that breach such regulations suffer from the activist organizations that hammer them down with the use of publicity. Writers such as Milton Friedman have portrayed their opinions suggesting that with the correct use of CSR, businesses should be advancing in their profits while supporting the society in a positive way. With the new use of CSR reports, companies have recognized the new risks for their organizations resulting in innovations that give them an advantage. As time passes new techniques for approaching CSR will be discovered as more and more corporations are starting to recognize the benefits for both their businesses and society.

References:

Porter, Michael E., and Mark R. Kramer. “Strategy and Society: The Link Between Competitive Advantage and Corporate Social Responsibility.” Harvard Business Review. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Sept. 2014.

“EZproxy Login.” UBC Library. Springer, Jan. 2007. Web. 10 Sept. 2014.