Social Entrepreneurship and Arc initiative.

The question raised in the Class prep for Social Enterprise and The Arc Initiative was ” If the United Nations was fully funded why would we need the arc or social enterprise”?

Even if the United Nations was fully funded, we would need social enterprise. There are so many successful entrepreneurs in this world but in contrast to them , there are plenty of undeveloped groups of people living in this world. My point of view is that , United Nations alone will not be able to solve this problem but when most of the successful entrepreneurs turn to be social entrepreneurs , it might be possible. As mentioned in the resources , Muhammad Yunus (Grameen Bank) won the Nobel price for being a society’s change agent.

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It will not make a very big difference or change in the profits of their business by just being a helping hand for a small group of people who are in need of support. The entrepreneurs will be able to solve the group’s financial problems because their loan amounts are not huge amounts but it might seem to look big for them. The most essential need would be health care and the social enterprises , arc initiative , the UN take initiative to provide free medical services.

On the whole , I would suggest that the United Nations and the social enterprise work together on solving the issues, rather than any one of them taking steps.

 

Reference:

http://connect.ubc.ca/

 

 

 

 

 

Re: Hiring friends…….yay or nay?

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This blog post is in response to Blessie Rae Canete’s blog on hiring friends in business as partners . She accepts to start a business with a partner and is more interested in close friends to be the partners. But I would disagree having partnership with a friend. I will not take risks on friendships this way. In my point of view, friends should just be friends.

Although , you trust your friends, you might not be aware of how well they will be able to perform. You might be an active partner , who works hard for the business to grow . But , what if they don’t take part in business. As they are friends, and if you are unhappy with them, you will feel uncomfortable to tell them to quit the business.

I have got an other personality who supports my view. Brad Sugars , the founder and chairman of ActionCOACH mentioned in an article that if your business ends , your friendship ends. Being a business coach and having more than 1,000 offices in 34 countries , he opposes to have partnerships with friends. I would say that , if you have a break up due to some other reasons regardless of business, then your business would shut down. Or if your business is in a situation to end , your friendship ends.

To conclude , I suggest to have partnerships with some reputed firms instead of just hiring a friend and entering the state of psychological depression.

 

 

Reference :

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/196912

https://blogs.ubc.ca/blessiec/

 

 

 

 

Most of the newly launched products fail.

 

This blog is in response to Katy Wang’s blog post on “Why most new products fail?”. She had mentioned all possible important things that an entrepreneur or a manufacturer should focus on, while launching a new product . I strongly agree with all that she had mentioned in her blog on why the products are failing.

The point is that , you need to investigate before you innovate ,  a few of them stay in long term but most of them just disappear . Out of all the important things , the most basic thing  the firm should do is to estimate what is certain. They should also do good market research, know about government interference etc.  The firm should also know about their risks even if their product is going to be successful.  It also depends on the number of “likes” and how comfortable the customers are with the product. As mentioned there are two types of launch products – revolutionary new product or a product improvement.  An other example for the product improvement could be coke or Pepsi trying to improve the product not by taste but other aspects like packaging and different ideas of marketing .  Operations is also a most important factor to keep track on.
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On the whole, my opinion for a firm launching a new product would be to anticipate the risks and failures they would to make their product stay in the market . Ofcourse, they should keep improving the product and they must be doing the same thing as launching a brand new one.

 

Referred:

https://connect.ubc.ca/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_45361_1%26url%3D

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rich Dad , Poor Dad.

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As I was thinking about coming up with some unique information, a sudden idea stroke to write about one of my favorite books. Yes, it is a book written by Robert Kiyoski – ” Rich Dad, Poor Dad”. What the rich teach their kids about money-That the poor or middle class do not!

RK has creatively narrated his childhood experiences and advices from his two dads. One was the biological dad (poor dad) and the other was his childhood bestfriend’s father (rich dad). Though the advices towards money from both of them were completely contrast, he listened to them very well and took a good decision at the right age to follow his rich dad’s advices. His poor dad used to advice him to study well and get a good job. He wanted him to work for money but the rich dad taught him how to make money and he was a business acumen. This book mentions about asset building, finance, inspirational quotes like “The love of money is the root of all evil. The lack of money is the root of all evil” – Robert Kiyoski. On the whole, it is a good package of business lessons from an entrepreneur and financial commentator.

I found this book to be so inspirational for all the people in the path of business and the ones who desire to start their own business. I strongly recommend for those who are not aware of this book to give a try.

 

Reference:

Book: Rich Dad Poor Dad. Author : Robert Kiyoski.

 

Success through failures!

I recently came across a random person’s blog. The blog ” What I learned about Leadership from the blue and gold” was written by Sheri Mazurek(training and human resource professional). She shares the valuable lessons that she had learned during her failures in business.

“Failure is the stepping stone of success”- Swami Vivekananda. This is the quote that I always believe on. It is true , one can develop success from the failures. One of the most valuable lesson she learned was, true understanding of the power and influence of a good leader and realized that her leadership style was the biggest obstacle to consistent success of the business.

We do hear a lot of advices from different professionals all the time but we would never care about it until we fall in some trouble. Similarly, Sheri went over different failures. For instance, financial, operational and some cases with customers, but the failures with people made her self-reflect. She then attended a leadership retreat, even though she had listened to all of them already. She implemented them in the business and it worked.

Life is a learning process. I have learned that failure in business is painful but when it is taken positive and when we work harder for the success by implementing the ideas from failure, it is possible.

 

Reference:

managementhelp.org/blogs/human-resources/2013/11/07/what-i-learned-about-leadership-from-the-blue-and-gold/

Chips packets are focused on quality or quantity?

A sudden question raised in my mind while I was eating a famous brand’s chips. What is that which makes the packet look so filled ? Are the manufacturers doing the right thing ? Do people feel that the quantity of the chips is less, than what was expected?

Well, it is nitrogen gas that makes the packet look so filled. Yes, the manufacturers are doing the right thing.This nitrogen retards bacteria and also prevents the chips from spoilage. The manufacturers are concentrating on health aspect even though their product is not healthy.There will be no oxygen and so , they cannot oxidize. Although , the product is not healthy as they contain a lot of fat and oil, by using nitrogen gas in the packets , the situation of the consumers does not become worse. Therefore, it is good that the manufacturers emphasize on quality.

A few customers who are not aware of the packaging might feel that they are being chiseled by the product manufacturers. But I would say that the companies don’t cheat because enough information will be available on the label. Yet, not all the chips manufacturers are being true. It depends on the consumer’s awareness as well as the companies’ sincerity.

On my point of view, I would say that manufacturers are trying to be more true on quality but not up to expectations on quantity.

 

Reference:

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_potato_chips_manufacturers_fill_the _packet_of_chips_with_nitrogen_gas

 

A new housing form for the First Nations.

Housing is the most essential requirement for all the human beings in this world. In the regards of housing for the first nations, it was challenging due to their financial crisis. The one which would have probably made this issue challenging is income, where by building costs or any costs involved for housing would have been an Achilles heel. Now for them to expunge this obstacle , they had introduced this new first nations housing which is actually better than a normal building code.

Guests and residents of Atikameksheng Anishnawbek First Nation, near Sudbury, toured a four-unit complex, the first built using the First Nations Sustainable Development Standard as a guide.

The new form of housing consists a sustainable development standard and made as a building code too. To describe a little more, they use new type of concrete, the homes are resistant to mold and fire, and were built using non-toxic materials. This is how the first nations came out with.

It is appreciable that the First nations had taken such an action to have a better living. Now there are a few builders emerging to have partnerships with the first nations. This will soon be a growing factor and there wouldn’t be room for obstacles there after. The aboriginal home builders have started building these kind of houses to serve the first nations communities.

“So when First Nations get an opportunity to participate in a project like this, it’s very beneficial to the community.”

Non-profit Organization striving to do be the best.

Shree Sarasswathi Vidhyaah Mandheer Affiliated to Central Board of Secondary Education well known as SSVM managed by Sri Srisha Educational and charitable Trust commenced on 8th September, 1998,Tamilnadu, India. The main aim of the trust is to establish quality education which enhances the quality of the students. The trust has reached unimaginable heights with the tireless efforts within a span of 17 years. Trust also expanded with its service by establishing SSVM Matric Higher Secondary School approved by state government.

The soul of the institution is the Athma Seva “Sessile for disabled” where differently abled children are given individual Educational attention. Its a free sessile rendered by the management to the poor children in and around Mettupalayam to make them better individuals by providing them self help skills. Its a non profit organisation which has earned a goodwill. They have achieved the pride of being the best schools in the city. They are less expensive compared to the other institutions, but with better facilities.

cbse school in coimbatore

A clean and green Campus with dedicated teachers who mould a million minds is a boon to this institution. As the Trust is a non profit organization registered under Trust act of India, the surplus income is being spent for the development of the Institutions run by the Trust.

Founder & Chairman Smt.Manimekalai Mohan Speaks : I wanted to serve the Children community of in and around Coimbatore with quality education. Now I am happy that Children from different parts of country and even Non Resident Indians are benefitted.

 

Reference: www.ssvminstitutions.in/

ELECTRONIC TARGET SYSTEM BY iFUTURE SYSTEMS

                                                                                            

Elite Scorer is a product made by iFuture Systems, an Industrial Automation company. Elite Scorer is an Electronic Target system useful for sports shooters and defense for training purpose. It is a device which can be placed at a 10 meter distance and shots can be fired at it. There is a recording medium which is a paper that makes bullet holes when fired upon. An image sensor reads this shot locations and sends it to a software on to the laptop using local network WiFi.

Elite Scorer has 3 main competitors in the world namely Sius Ascor AG, Meyton Electronic and Megalink. Elite Scorer uses an innovative patent pending imaging technology while others use more expensive technology to acheive the same objective. Elite Scorer through its innovation is able to price the product 50% lower than its competition and hence built large demand and a firm business model. Due to its manufacturing location being in India, it is also benefited by low cost of labor in compared to the other 3 which are European manufacturers. Elite Scorer has various models which vary in software.
Rajesh Manpat,CEO Speaks:” We developed Elite Scorer for the masses, to make owning a personal target system affordable. We work on increasing our sales numbers to keep profitable as the model we follow is lower margins, but more of sales. To stay ahead of competition, we continuously innovate and come out with added features often”.
                                                                                  ELITE SCORER
REFERENCE : http://www.elitescorer.com/Electronic-targets.aspx

Oil Supplier

Is the business ethic being followed here? I totally agree with the article posted by Kerry Poon. Chang Guann Co., a leading oil supplier in Taiwan was fined US$1.67 million on Tuesday the 9th for selling hundreds tonnes of “gutter oil.” In February 2014, Chang Guann purchased 243 tonnes of tainted oil collected from cookers, fryers, and grease traps; he then mixed it up with lard oil for sale. There was a total of 782 tonnes of gutter oil produced and used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau (Kerry Poon’s UBC blog). This oil was used in almost all the restaurants of these countries. If the concept is to be socially responsible, the company has violated it. But has been selfish by only earning profits. This would be a wrong decision because now their market has gone down, probably will not be able to acquire more returns. It is a situation where they have made the society unhappy during an important occasion and which will not be accepted easily by the general public. Instead, if the company had gone with an idea of the way they supply regularly, it should have been beneficial to both the suppliers and consumers. To conclude, we can be very sure that if social responsibility is a business ethic, then this oil supplier has not followed it.

Referred:

Taiwan Oil Supplier fined US$1.67 Million Over Gutter Oil