The United Nations was founded in 1945 as an intergovernmental organization.  Its mandate is to maintain international peace and security, uphold human rights, and foster economic development. It is an organization with nations dealing with nations and big bureaucracies dealing with big bureaucracies. As a result, there will be political influences and alliances. The UN cannot relate to the problems of a small business on a localized level.

On the other hand, social entrepreneurs and the ARC Initiative are not big government bureaucracies.  Therefore, they are not influenced by political agendas or alliances. They work at the grassroots level with small businesses such as Salem’s Ethiopia Craft Boutique and Shega Shero Eatery.  These small businesses would never hit the radar of the United Nations, but are the exact type of businesses that will foster sustainability and self sufficiency for developing countries.  By providing micro-financing and facilitating the exchange of knowledge and business skills, such initiatives are building a better, sustainable world. By providing ARC participants with hands on experience in the real working environment, it truly is a mutually beneficial partnership that will grow.  The UN will never replace the indispensable role of social enterprise and ARC because it does not see the potential in small businesses and does not share the same vision and entrepreneurial spirit.

Canada’s greatest asset is our natural resources.  Mining, agriculture, fishery, oil and gas, account for practically all of Canada’s exports.  The biggest challenge for the resource industry is extraction and delivery of its products to the final users.  Logistics is critical to its success.  This is why the proposed pipelines are so important to the oil industry.  With the Keystone XL and Northern Gateway pipeline projects in limbo, the oil companies are looking to alternative avenues and markets.  Exporting to Europe and Asia provides market diversification.  Supply and demand is a factor.  With shortage of oil in Europe and Asia, oil commands higher international prices.

 

It is ironic that our oil is shipped to Europe and Asia through the United States.  Without pipelines in Canada, oil companies are utilizing American pipelines to ship oil to tankers located in Southeast USA and hauled to Europe. This process actually increases the carbon footprint and is more harmful to the global environment.  If environmentalists are truly concerned, they need to think more globally than that of the local environment.  By protecting the local environment, we potentially put the global environment at risk.  The world is getting smaller and the global environment is our back yard.  Reducing our carbon footprint will ensure long-term sustainability.

 

Edmond Mak, a fellow classmate posted an interesting blog on the importance of accounting.  It seems that there are a never-ending number of cases involving fraudulent financial reporting.  Enron, WorldCom, and Tesco highlight the corruption and greed of corporate management.  However, the blame is not just on developing better accounting standards.  The external auditors should share the blame.

 

The purpose of financial accounting is to provide relevant, timely, and useful information to external stakeholders.  By requiring all reporting companies to comply with one set of rules or standards, we can ensure that users are getting relevant information.  Accounting standards allow the financial market to compare one company’s performance and financial strength against another.  However, if management is determined to manipulate and fraudulently state their financial statements, accounting standards alone will not bring this to light.  This is why publicly traded companies are required to have their financial statements audited. The role of the external auditor is to measure the compliance of the company’s financial statements against the standards to which it is required to follow.  Auditors are independent from management and do not serve the corporation.

 

Even though Edmond highlighted the importance of accounting standards, the elimination or reduction of accounting fraud requires auditors to set up and protect the public.

 

Today, it is surprising to see that we still struggle with gender equality issues.  With increasing number of women entering business schools, we would expect more women in the boardrooms of America.  However, it seems that Corporate America has not moved into the 21^st century.  The Old Boys Club is still strong and thriving.

 

In time, this tide will turn based on two influential forces.  First, market forces will elevate the role of women in the corporate boardrooms.  Although women make up 50% of the consumer market, they actually do more than half of the buying.  If businesses are to appeal to this market segment, it will need women leaders to relate to these consumers.

 

The second force is the attitude of women.  I do not believe that women can be legislated into the corporate boardrooms. Governments are mandating gender equality legislation.  Governments are setting quotas for companies to hire based on sex, ethnic diversity, and disability.  Women should not expect this kind of advantage to secure the corner office.  If women want to earn the respect of the corporate world, they need to perform.  I believe that women can add value and boost corporate bottom lines.  Women will enhance collective intelligence by bringing a different perspective.

Jon Loomer, the “Facebook Marketing Guru”, has written blog posts on utilizing the Facebook platform to generate higher traffic to websites. He is an expert in the creating effective Facebook ad reports and custom audiences for multiple websites.  Jon Loomer is a pioneer in social media consulting but I believe his true business model is the proven formula of building brand and developing a strong value proposition.

 

Mr. Loomer has a fascinating personal story of success and perseverance.  After several lay-offs and struggles in the corporate world, he found a way to redefine himself and create a self-sustaining business.  He leveraged his knowledge of the Facebook platform and branded himself as an expert.  His business was successful because he developed a value proposition around his brand to meet a very specific need in the market.  By identifying a specific target segment, showcasing his brand and expertise, and demonstrating how he can bring a point of difference to benefit that segment, he showed that he can add value to potential clients.

 

Mr. Loomer’s story taught me that you do not need to have a large capital base to start a successful business, and need not follow the traditional path of climbing a corporate ladder.  The key to success is hard work and creating a value proposition to fulfill a niche in the market.

 

 

Canada has enjoyed significant economic growth and prosperity because of its established financial infrastructure and stable geopolitical environment.  Our banking, communication and transportation systems, and stable democracy allow commerce to thrive.  However, the issue of First Nation rights may significantly alter the stable geopolitical environment.   Sound business decisions cannot be made with pending uncertainty surrounding land claims.  Decisions on BC Hydro’s Megaproject, the Northern Gateway Pipeline, and the Taseko Gold Mine project can be stalled for years.

 

Business leaders may feel undue frustration in the slow negotiations of land claims.  Their well-devised business plans are not carried out due to forces out of their control.    Business leaders need to understand that in order to thrive, they need to address more than the traditional issues of supply chain, distribution channels and marketing.  They also need to consider societal and cultural trends, political uncertainty, and First Nation land claims.  Furthermore, they need to address the concern of all stakeholders as argued by Edward Freeman.  The regulators, First Nations people, and environmentalist are just as much a stakeholder as the shareholders and creditors.

 

Our forefathers laid down the road by developing transportation and banking systems, which benefit businesses today.  The business leaders of today need to make sacrifices by negotiating land claims and addressing environmental issues for the benefit of tomorrow’s business leaders.

 

 

Ian Paul stated that FIFA correctly stripped Hamman of his executive committee position but should have also stripped Qatar of its right to host the World Cup.  Since organized sports involves billions of dollars, there will always be corruption and undue influences.  To change this unethical behavior, we need more than policing and punishment.  We need a cultural shift.  Business and organizational leaders need to set the tone and be the example.  However, since everyone makes mistakes, organizations need to develop policies to foster better behavior.

 

Whether Hamman purposely or inadvertently used his position to benefit Qatar is unknown.  If FIFA is serious about cleaning up its image by eliminating undue influences and ensuring a fair and ethical process, it needs to develop a policy of transparency and guidelines in conflict of interest.  The fact that Hamman was on the executive committee of FIFA gives him access to certain information that could be used to Qatar’s advantage.  This is obviously a conflict of interest.  Policies should be set up to prevent individuals with access to privy information from participating in the bidding process.  Furthermore, if rules on transparency were in place, all parties involved can assess and determine if other dealings have an undue influence on their decisions.  These policies will foster better leaders for tomorrow.

 

 

There has been a long standing debate as to whether there is a place for government in business. Some argue that government should stay out of business and let the free enterprise market drive itself.  The most efficient and effective companies will survive while the inefficient ones will be pushed out of the market.  Others argue that businesses need regulators to police and regulate business practices.  For examples, government regulators should govern the sales of cigarettes, as they affect the health of society.  They argue that government regulators should apply tariffs to protect local jobs.  Whether they should intervene or not, the government must remain relevant and understand the current business practices.  This requires that the government utilize technology so they can keep up with businesses. Regulators cannot rely on 50 year old rules to govern the changing world.  CRTC is trying to regulate a dying industry while the world has moved ahead to the next generation in communications. This regulator is thinking in the 1970’s and applying their thinking to the 2020’s. Therefore, if the government wants to have a meaningful role in the market, they must keep up with fast growing businesses.  If they are unable to do so, they should get out and let the market run free.

In today’s retail market, you need to be nimble and one step ahead of the competition. Seemingly today, that means companies must understand their customers and understand their niche.  What do your customers want and how will you fill that need? Long established retailers such as Bowring, Jacob, and Bombay are filing for bankruptcy because they have not changed their business model.  Why is Holt Renfrew still thriving when they are charging such high prices and Jacob, who charges reasonably prices, has filed for bankruptcy?  It is because Holt Renfrew understands their target customer and are always working to meet their needs.  In the future, successful retailers have to be very efficient.  Either you are a mass distributor- such as Walmart, who have efficient distribution channels and can bring products to the consumers at low costs.  Or you are a niche market player that understands the product and service that the customers want. If you are not one of these two, your company will likely become another statistic in the long list of bankrupt retailers.

On the runways of New York, a new item is making a big splash.  New “smart watches” debuted at one of the most prestigious fashion shows in the world.  Not to be topped, Apple is about to launch a new, innovative smart watch known as the “iwatch”.  In a news release, Apple designer Jonathan Ive boldly predicted that the iwatch will bring down the Swiss watch industry. Is it possible that the entire Swiss watch industry can be taken down by a single product?  Or is Mr Ive simply trying a marketing ploy to stir up interest in their new product? While Apple does have a new product on the market, it is not enough to take down the Swiss industry.  People buy a Patek Phillip or Rolex watch, not just to tell time.  True, it does tell time accurate to a millisecond, but it is mainly a status symbol.  People wear a Rolex watch because they can afford the luxury of spending $10, 000 on an item that performs a function available on other devices, such as a cell phone.  Therefore, while the iwatch will certainly be a product of high demand, the Swiss industry is here to stay.