” If  the United Nations was fully funded why would we need the Arc or social enterprise”?

After reading the posted articles in the class 20 preparation, I was genuinely pleased to learn about social entrepreneurs and the good they do for communities. These social entrepreneurs aren’t focused on maximizing profits or minimizing cost of production, but rather focused on the bettering of the community and its people. The social entrepreneurs we read about in the class prep saw an issue with society and focused all their efforts into fixing this problem. Social entrepreneurs are much different than other regular entrepreneurs. They are driven by the hope of a better world and the improvement in the quality of life of others as opposed to the maximization of profits and self-benefit.

I believe the world needs programs such as the Arc Initiative, no matter what happens regarding the United Nations. The United Nations may be fully funded, but there is no way for them to touch the lives of all the people around the world that are in need. Society needs social entrepreneurship and Social enterprise programs to generate jobs and benefit everyone involved.   In the article about Salem Kassahun, we were able to see the drive and dedication demonstrated by a social entrepreneur. Salem Kassahun began her business because she saw a problem, and used her skills as a social entrepreneur to generate a solution to this issue. She then had the opportunity to put profits and expansion over her initial goal, but instead decided to maintain high incomes for her employees and hire more women within the community. 

In conclusion, I believe that if more entrepreneurs made moves within struggling communities to better their quality of life, it would benefit the world in a much greater way than the United Nations ever could, even with full funding.

As I was browsing through blog posts, I came across a post by Steve Blank. This post really caught my eye. It outlined scalable startups in local and global markets. He described a very common mistake made by emerging entrepreneurs who are interested in becoming global leaders in the industry in regards to local expansion and the effect it has on potential global expansion.  Many companies prepare  for only a certain region of development, as opposed to preparing for expansion into the global market consisting of other potential countries and areas.

I chose this post because it goes deeper than what we have learned in class and explores real life examples that are extremely relevant when considering entrepreneurship as a career path. Steve Blank explained how local startups can only expand into industry defining companies if the company prepares for factors such as global distribution and market research. A company needs to go into major countries such as the U.S. or China to research manufacturing, distribution, and the customer segments that come with the territory. Only once the preparations for global development have been made will the company be able to aim for an industry leading position in their target market. Steve Bank also included a startup playbook which outlined the steps needed to build a scalable startup.

This Post really got me thinking about the many factors that are needed when considering a career in entrepreneurship. One really needs to be passionate about what they do in order to have even a slight chance at success in the marketplace.

Link: http://steveblank.com/2014/10/31/born-global-or-die-local-building-a-regional-startup-playbook/

Micheal Sky recently posted a blog about the direct correlation between consumer vehicle purchases and relative gas prices. Micheal brought up some very strong points regarding consumers purchasing vehicles and ignoring the potential effects on our environment. He was stating that society should become more educated on the topic of sustainability and a healthy environment. I believe that something needs to be done to save our environment as well.

Economically speaking however, the drop in oil prices is extremely beneficial. It is estimated that if the price of a barrel drops to $80, it will put 660 billion dollars  back into the economy. People will save on gas and begin purchasing other goods instead. Oil prices may even stay low in the future. Since new technology has arisen, the world has been able to obtain more and more oil from the planet. It is estimated that the world will be able to generate oil for another 53 to 250 years. If society is able to use this information responsibly the earth should be able to sustain us for a long time to come. However, the recent mass purchasing of gas guzzling vehicles such as Jeeps, is not helping the environment in any way. People need to become aware of the effects they are having on the environment and make decisions based on sustainability. Companies need to begin campaigning on the basis of environmental benefit. There is a large and growing market for electric and hybrid vehicles, but major companies are seeing such an increase in the sale of larger gas guzzlers, they are becoming blind to the economic effects. Good companies display strong ethics and should be focused on benefiting the world, not just themselves.

Link: https://connect.ubc.ca/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_45357_1%26url%3D

Other Links: http://money.cnn.com/2014/11/03/autos/cheap-gas-suv-pickup-sales/index.html?iid=SF_BN_River 

Vancouver’s housing market is the second least affordable in the world. Why? It’s due to the fact that there are so many foreign buyers interested  in a safe financial investment such as Canada. Lately, there has been a major crackdown on corruption in China; where most of the market flow has been coming from. Many wealthy foreigners who stay in China have seen their savings evaporate since this crackdown.

Since many wealthy Chinese families have become interested in the Vancouver housing market, Vancouver has seen 90% of homes valued at over 5 million dollars sold to Chinese families. The market has since had to adapt to this changing target consumer range. Prices of homes have been increasing substantially due to the competition between Canadians and foreign buyers. An increase in demand is directly correlated with an increase in price due to Vancouver’s location, there is no room to expand outwards, therefore, driving up the demand of local homes and making it so that only the extremely wealthy can buy. The real estate market has changed a significant amount to accommodate these new wealthy foreign buyers. An example being many new homes coming standard with a wok kitchen. Real estate firms, like any good marketing firm, always want to appeal to the consumer. If the targeted real estate market is 90% Central Chinese, then these firms want to adapt their product (housing) to appeal to this type of consumer. Therefore, including certain amenities may be an inexpensive way to better position the firm’s product in the mind of the consumer.

Link:http://business.financialpost.com/2014/09/11/china-buyers-vancouver-housing/#__federated=1

Google is one of the most successful businesses in the world, and much of this success is owed to the employees and the management structure of the company. Google has set up their workplaces in an extremely unique way, with seemingly unlimited perks to keep their employees and workforce happy throughout the day. Employees receive benefits such as gym memberships, stress yoga classes, free grooming appointments, unlimited food, and much more. Some might wonder why Google is spending so much money to keep their employees happy, but the answer lies in the amazing results the workforce yields.

According to Teresa Amabile, a business administration professor at Harvard Business School, there has been research to suggest that “great physical space enhances creativity”. Creativity and productivity are a key factor in any business and Google has created the perfect balance. Google does not even require employees to be at the office, however, many employees look forward to and are genuinely excited to be at work. They get free food and there are many activities available including stress relieving exercises and yoga which improve their quality of life. The workforce is the organization and therefore, if employees are passionate about what they do, they will give back to the company so much more than what the company gives to them. Google has not only made astounding profits, but has also greatly  increased the quality of life for their employees and customers.

Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/16/business/at-google-a-place-to-work-and-play.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

Recently, The Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz suggested that unpaid internships might be and extremely beneficial way for motivated youths to gain job experience. This statement has influenced a stream of counter ideas such as Claire Seaborn stating his proposal to be; ” a complete misunderstanding and devaluation of young people”. Claire Seaborn believes unpaid internships are contributing to the income gap between the wealthy and the less fortunate.

 Personally I believe that unpaid internships are extremely beneficial due to the fact that as an intern, one is gaining lifelong experience that will contribute to better jobs in the future. In regards to the view put forward by Claire Seaborn, we must consider the fact that there are many financial options available for students that are less fortunate. Student loans are put in place so that students are able to work part time at an internship while not having to worry about their financial situation. When labour laws require companies to pay their interns, the company will begin to get selective as to who they hire. This means that only students with impressive resumes and school experience will be taken. This actually ensures only the wealthy who’s parents can afford to send them to school will be eligible in most cases. Unpaid internships give motivated youth who would otherwise be ineligible, an opportunity to learn and further their experience in a given field.

Link: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/poloz-having-something-unpaid-on-your-cv-is-very-worth-it/article21439305/

American franchise “Planet Fitness” is planning on opening up their first Canadian gym in Toronto. Planet Fitness has a very unique business model which targets first time gym goers and encourages unfit people to exercise. “More than 80% of people do not have gym memberships” and this is usually due to the fact that many are intimated by the fit and large body builder types making them fee self-conscious. Many people are insecure about their bodies, creating a negative cycle of not exercising and becoming even more unhealthy. Planet Fitness is a ” judgement free zone” and has a “no lunks” policy that discourages the grunting that typically comes from large body builders, resulting in a more relaxing environment where people can feel comfortable working out.

Planet Fitness saw a great opportunity in Canada. The majority of gyms are intimidating, expensive, and tend to push first timers away instead of drawing them in. Planet Fitness’s business model is the exact opposite. They are low cost, and the furthest thing from intimidating. This opens up a whole new market in Canada. Now the percentage of people who want to become a member of a fitness centre have the chance at a low cost alternative. Planet Fitness is one of the first to target this market, resulting in their product (gym) staying in the consumers minds as the first or original “judgement free” fitness centre. If they are able to stick to their business model, the company should be quite successful in Canada, as they have been in the U.S.

Article: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/small-business/sb-growth/success-stories/us-gym-featured-on-the-biggest-loser-brings-judgment-free-ethos-to-canada/article21379199/