14A- Halfway Reflection

#1- Tenaciousness is a competency- To keep up with the requirements of this course which include two blog posts, four replies, and one cupcake per week I usually set aside two days a week, one day to focus on the two blog posts and lecture videos, and one day to complete the replies and the cupcake. Using this method I have not encountered any issues with staying on top of the work load for this class as of yet.

#2- Tenaciousness is also about attitude- During the starting periods of this class before I adopted the two day strategy that I implement now I had difficulties thinking of solutions to ensure that I can complete each assignment for this class on time. I also experienced one week when I had multiple exams and still had to complete assignments for this class. I had considered giving up and simply overlooking the work load for this class to prioritize these exams, however with the tenacious attitude this class teaches I was able to pull through and complete the work load for this class and study for exams.

#3 Three tips-

#1- I would recommend setting aside one or two days a week to devote to the assignments and lectures for this course. This way you will not be bogged down by assignments as the due days creep up.

#2- I would recommend keeping up with the lectures for the course as they are very interesting and also cover all of the content you will be asked on the cupcake assignments.

#3- Do not underestimate the blog post assignments. Despite there only being two of them and there only being a 150 word assignment the level of understanding needed to complete can cause them to take a decent amount of time to complete.

13A- Reading Reflection No. 1

Book: 

• Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald’s, Ray Kroc

#1A- What surprised you the most?- I was very surprised to learn that Ray Kroc started out his business career by selling paper cups. I had not imagined that the mastermind behind the McDonald's franchise would have started out selling something that seems so simple.

#1B- What about the entrepreneur did you most admire?- I admire Ray Kroc's dedication to franchising McDonald's. Without his perseverance and determination McDonald's would not be the instantly recognizable brand that it is today.

#1C- What about the entrepreneur did you least admire?- The factor I least admire about Ray Kroc was that he accepted a deal with his former paper cup company that allowed them to take 60% of his earnings despite knowing this was a bad deal. I feel that Ray Kroc could have worked out a better deal with the paper cup company to ensure a more profitable arrangement.

#1D- Did the entrepreneur encounter adversity and failure?- Yes Ray Kroc encountered manner setbacks along his venture as he accepted a deal that caused him to lose 60% of his earnings in his early career selling Multi-mixers.

#2- What competencies did you notice the entrepreneur exhibited?- Ray Kroc exhibited competency with his skills in entrepreneurship.  He was able to successfully market two products and was then able to take advantage of the opportunities he saw in the McDonald's restaurant and take it to new levels via franchising.

#3- Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you- I was confused as to why Ray Kroc accepted the deal with the paper cup company that allowed them to take 60% of the earnings he made from the Multi-mixer sales. This seems like something Ray Kroc would not normally do.

#4-If you were able to ask the entrepreneur two questions what would they be?- 
#1- "What was it like established McDonald's as a chain of franchises?"
#2- "How did you manage so many franchises at once?"

#5- What do you think the entrepreneur thought of hard work? Do you share that opinion?- I think that Ray Kroc thought very highly of hard work and respected those willing to go above and beyond in the work environment. I also share this opinion as I feel that hard work is invaluable in the business environment.

12A- Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 1

Pick a segment- The segment for my product would be consumers of all ages who live in a multi-person household.

Three Interviews- 

    #1- Jack- My first interview was with Jack who lives with three other relatives in his household. After speaking with Jack and confirmed he does have this unmet need as he has constantly had his food stolen by his relatives. I spoke to Jack about what he does to prevent this and stated that he tries to hide his food in the back of the refrigerator, however this almost never works.
 
    #2-Rebecca- My second interview was with Rebecca a worker in a nearby office building. I confirmed that Rebecca does indeed have issues with coworkers pilfering her food during her shifts, preventing her from having lunch. I spoke to her about what she does to prevent this and she stated that she tends to put sticky notes on her food, but that they always seem to "disappear".

   #3- Matt-  My third interview was with Matt, a student at the nearby USF campus who lives in a dorm room with a roommate. I confirmed with Matt that his roommate does indeed steal the food he leaves in the refrigerator. When asked how he tries to prevent this Matt stated that he tried purchasing a second mini refrigerator in the hopes that his roommate would leave it alone. They did not.

The Findings- It seems that the current means to prevent the pilfering of food are not very effective and lead to further scavenging of the food left in the refrigerator. This coincides with the interviews in previous assignments that seem to result in similar situations.

The Conclusion- The results from these interviews seem to echo my interviews in previous assignments wherein interviewees indicate that their chosen methods to prevent their food from being stolen have not proven effective. This seems to confirm my hypothesis that current means of preventing this issue do not work and a new solution is needed.

11A- Idea Napkin No.1

You- My name is Aaron Hunt, and I am studying business administration at the University of Florida. I have had prior exposure to the business and entrepreneur environments through my father and hypothesize that the need for my product exists.

What are you offering to customers?- A password protected, climate controlled lockbox that can be placed inside of a refrigerator to ensure only the owner of the box can access the food, preventing others from stealing the owners food.

Who are you offering it to?- Individuals who live in households with multiple other relatives, Individuals who work in an office space with a shared refrigerator, and college students who live in dorm rooms with roommates.

Why do they care?- People who have experienced the frustration of returning home to relax and enjoy their leftover food from the day before, or workers who go to retrieve their lunch from the office refrigerator only to find it missing would have a desire to ensure this frustration does not continue in the future.

What are your core competencies?- While there are other methods to prevent the plundering of food such as placing sticky notes on the items none of these prevent others from taking the food regardless. By having a password protected lockbox it ensures that only the owner can gain access to the food.

Evaluation- While I do believe these elements fit well together there are weaknesses in the concept in the form of how the implementation of the password protected lock would be achieved and determining the size of the lockbox itself to ensure that it can fit inside a refrigerator while also allowing the protection of a sizable amount of food.

10A- Elevator Pitch No. 1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFKVJ4UumrY

9A- Testing the Hypothesis, Part 2

Who?- I have interviewed five members of the community who may not have the need for the automated breaking system I have described in the previous assignments. These individuals range from people who prefer to take public transportation to individuals who do not own motor vehicles.
        Interview 1: My first interview was with Mary, who although she owns a motor vehicle prefers to take the bus or carpool to work.
       Interview 2: The second interview I performed was with Jake a local student at USF who does not own a motor vehicle, and as he lives nearby takes his bike to classes every day.
       Interview 3: The third individual I interviewed was Peter who does not own a motor vehicle and instead prefers to take rides with services such as Uber and Lyft.
      Interview 4: The fourth interview I performed was with Margaret who works from home and such rarely uses her motor vehicle.
      Interview 5: My final interview was with Janet who is a stay at home mother that does not regularly leave the house so that she can take car of her young children.
What?- The need that I have identified seems to conflict with these the needs of these individuals as they do not regularly operate their own motor vehicles and either stay at home or rely on other modes of transportation.
Why?- The needs of these consumers seem to be different from those in the target audience due to their needs being based around not directly driving themselves.

Inside the Boundary	Outside the Boundary
Who? - Drivers who would like the peace of mind an automated braking system could provide.	Who? – Individuals who do not regularly use their own vehicles.
What? – Automated braking system that could be mounted on current and future vehicles to provide a safety net for drivers and pedestrians.	What? – People who do not use their own vehicles and prefer to use public transportation or other means of transportation would not have a need for this product.
Why? – By providing a safety net for drivers in the form of an automated braking system that could be mounted in all current vehicles it could reduce the amount of motor vehicle accidents and distracted driving deaths.	Alternative? – A potential alternative to this issue would be to develop a new version of the automated breaking device for use in public transportation vehicles such as buses.

Summary- The interviews performed in this assignment have provided invaluable information regarding the consumers who exist outside the boundary of the product.  This information will allow me to narrow down the target audience for this product and will consequentially ensure that the product becomes known to potential consumers who fit this need.

8A- Solving The Problem

#1: Selected Opportunity: The problem I have identified in the previous assignments was that many motorists become distracted while driving resulting in potential destruction of property and in some cases loss of life. This is an epidemic that has plagued the country for many years and deaths related to distracted driving continue to rise year after year seemingly without an end in sight. Currently there do not seem to be any solutions to this problem.

#2: The Product: My solution to this issue is a device that could be mounted on the dashboard or hood of any current or future automobile that could sense when a collision is imminent and automatically begin to stop the vehicle. This could prevent many accidents by having the device begin braking in the event that the driver becomes distracted and is unaware of the incoming object in the road. However, in the previous assignment, 7A- Testing the Hypothesis Part 1, I discovered through interviewing potential customers that this device could solve a larger range of problems than I had initially anticipated such as providing a safety net to already safe drivers in the event of unforeseen circumstances such as an animal darting out in front of the road while driving through the wilderness, or helping drivers react while driving through tight, unpredictable spaces such as downtown, or a university campus.  If this product were to become a success it could pave the way for safer streets and a much less stressful driving experience.

7A- Testing the Hypothesis, Part 1

The Opportunity: There are a large number of distracted drivers on the road that put others at risk with their disregard to their own surroundings.

The Who: Others who could share this need include: Pedestrians, Drivers, and Automotive Companies.

The What:  I hypothesize there is a need for a device that can be implemented in current and future automobiles to automatically detect and stop the vehicle if a collision is immanent. These sensors could be attached to current vehicles and detect when an object in front of the vehicle enters a range where a potential collision could occur.

The Why: Damages and tragic losses caused by distracted motorists have been on the rise for many years now and have no signs of slowing down. Without any braking devices or warning systems being implemented in many current vehicles there is simply not enough being done to stop this epidemic. By implementing this product into current and future vehicles it could severely reduce auto accidents while also saving drivers money on vehicle repairs and car insurance.

Testing the Hypothesis: To test the hypothesis I interviewed five potential customers for this new product:

1: James- The first interview I did was with James. James stated that this product would be very helpful while traveling through downtown Tampa as pedestrians very often walk across the street without looking for oncoming traffic, resulting in very close calls with drivers. James stated that he would purchase this product to ensure that he has plenty of time and opportunities to stop his vehicle in the event an incident like this happens in the future.

2: Rachael- My second interview was with Rachael. During the conversation I had with Rachael she indicated that as someone who typically traveled to walking trails around the state that this device would be invaluable while driving off road as it would provide a safety net in the event that a wild animal were to dart out in front of the car.

3: Chris: The third individual I interviewed, Chris is currently employed at a car dealership near Tampa. Chris stated that he believes this device would absolutely be a market for this new device in the form of dealerships that would be eager to supply this product as well as motorists who would like to have this device implemented in their vehicles.

4: Garret: The fourth interview I had was with Garret. While interviewing Garret he stated that while he would enjoy the safety net an automated braking system would provide he also brought up the suggestion to have a secondary device included with the primary device at the front of the car that could sense objects behind the car to prevent collisions while attempting to back out of a parking space.

5: Zoe: My final interview was with Zoe, a student at the USF campus near Tampa. Zoe was very enthusiastic about this product as she believes it would help alleviate the stress she encounters when driving around the campus as she believes the added safety net of an automated braking system would prevent collisions with unsafe drivers and unaware pedestrians around the campus.

Summary: After performing these interviews it has become aware to me that the "Who" of this product could be much larger than I had anticipated. While I had envisioned the product as an assistance tool for drivers that often find themselves distracted the interviews with Rachael and Zoe indicate that there could be a potential market in the form of outdoors drivers and motorists who travel in confined spaces that could give non distracted drivers a safety net to help them stop their vehicle in the event of extreme circumstances.

6A- Identifying Opportunities in Economic & Regulatory Trends

Economic Opportunity #1- 
     #1- The Opportunity: The rising demands of sanitary masks in China is resulting in a large scale shortage across the country. This could be an opportunity for an entrepreneur to develop a low-cost mask that can effectively prevent the spread of the Coronavirus. This provides the opportunity to enter a Chinese market as well as an opportunity to aid the containment of the virus.
      #2- Breakdown:
           A- https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3049170/why-china-grips-facial-mask-shortage-coronavirus-death-toll. by Elaine Chan, South China Morning Post.
           B- The current shortage in the Chinese market for sanitary masks has lead me to believe there is an opportunity for entrepreneurs to step in with a low-cost easy to manufacture yet effective mask capable of being produced at a rapid rate to aid in combating the Coronavirus.
           C- The prototypical customer for this opportunity would be consumers currently living in China who do not have access to masks to help prevent the spread of the Coronavirus. The new masks could be supplied to hospitals in the country as to further aid in the containment of the virus.
            D- This opportunity would be relatively difficult to exploit as the masks would need to undergo various testing to ensure their quality before being deployed to assist in the containment of the Coronavirus as well as issues that could be encountered when entering a foreign market.
        #3- Why did I see this opportunity: The spread of the Coronavirus is a tragedy that is taking China by storm and as a result is causing a vast shortage in the supply of sanitary masks. I see this opportunity as a chance to assist the Chinese effort to contain the virus by supplying the government, hospitals, and citizens with low-cost, effective sanity masks to relieve the shortage and help combat the Coronavirus while also giving the chance to enter a new foreign market.

Economic Opportunity #2-
    #1- The Opportunity: The need for clean energy in 2020 is becoming a huge opportunity for technology inventors as they create new technology to fill this gap.
    #2-Breakdown:
          A- https://www.cfr.org/blog/2020-presidential-candidates-race-renewable-energy-how-will-they-get-there by Zoe Dawson.
          B- This article describes the need for clean energy products to help replace older, more disruptive products to help combat climate change.
           C- The prototypical customer for this opportunity would be consumers looking to make a difference regarding the current issue on climate change, tech companies, and state and local governments.
          D- This opportunity could be relatively difficult to exploit as it requires products to meet very strict environmental regulations while also meeting the standards and expectations of customers.
    #3-Why did I see this opportunity: The climate change dilemma is one that affects everyone around the globe. By introducing new, cleaner products entrepreneurs can take advantage of this emerging market while also combating climate change.

Regulatory Opportunity #1-
    #1- The Opportunity: New security regulations that will punish companies for failing to protect data from hackers could lead to an opportunity for a more advanced internet security system.
    #2-Breakdown:
          A- https://www.forbes.com/sites/waynerash/2019/12/19/regulation-in-2020--new-ways-the-government-will-affect-your-business/#27cdb42b3f23 by Wayne Rash, Forbes.
          B- The article describes new security regulations that will be implemented in 2020 that will force companies to comply with a higher level of data protection. However, with the amount of data breaches companies have been experiencing it seems that there is certainly a market for new high security data systems.
           C- The prototypical customers for this opportunity would be businesses and government organizations that require a higher level of hacking prevention.
          D- This opportunity could be relatively difficult to exploit as it would require meeting these new regulations and require the product to always stay on top of new security threats.
     #3- Why did I see this opportunity- The increasing amount and cost of data breaches has been very concerning and with the implementation of forced regulation to ensure that these data breaches are brought under control I could see an emerging opportunity for new cyber security.

Regulatory Opportunity #2-
       #1- The Opportunity: New 5G technology could require new, faster, and adaptable network infrastructure technology to ensure that it will stay compliant with new regulations.
        #2- Breakdown:
                A- https://www.forbes.com/sites/waynerash/2019/12/19/regulation-in-2020--new-ways-the-government-will-affect-your-business/#27cdb42b3f23 by Wayne Rash, Forbes.
                 B- This article brings up the new emerging 5G technology and how it will have to be able to adapt quickly to new regulation designed around it. This brings with it the need for a new, adaptable network infrastructure that can be updated quickly as new regulations emerge.
                  C- The prototypical customers for this opportunity would cellular companies that are branching into the new 5G technology.
                 D- This opportunity could be difficult to exploit as the infrastructure will need to advanced and must be able to keep up with the demands of the customers and government regulations.
         #3-Why I see this opportunity- The new 5G market will bring with it a new need for infrastructure that can be easily modified to keep up with government changes and new laws applied to the brand new technology.