16A - What's Your secret sauce?

Five ways in which I think I have Human Capital:

1.    Determination – I try to not let challenges knock me down. But if they ever do, I always get back up and try even harder. 

2.    Independence – I’m never opposed to getting help from others, but I never completely rely on others which I think makes me strong. 

3.    Passion – There are certain things I’m very passionate about which I think have made me the way I am today. It makes it easier to do things when you feel strongly about them. 

4.    Sympathy – I can put myself in other people’s place and actually understand how they feel which makes me a more relatable person.

5.    Reliable – A lot of my friends feel like they can count on me. I always try to be there for them.

Interviews:

Roommate: https://soundcloud.com/alecasari1998/interview-1-16a

Sister: https://soundcloud.com/alecasari1998/interview-2-16a

Close friend: https://soundcloud.com/alecasari1998/interview-3-16a

Close friend: https://soundcloud.com/alecasari1998/interview-4-16a

Cousin:https://soundcloud.com/alecasari1998/interview-5-16a

Reflection  

I found this assignment kind of exciting becuase I got to see what some of my closest friends thought of me. For the most part I was seen as a very open-minded person which I think is a very good thing. I feel that for the most part I think we said similar things. Because they have known me for a long time and know how much I like to travel, they focus on that aspect of me which I thought was pretty cool. I don't think I would change anything from the first part becuase I feel like those qualities still descrive me pretty well. 

15A - Figuring Out Buyer Behavior #2

Interview Summary 

            The interviews I conducted helped me realize what is most important when making such an important purchase for a business. In my first interview, I learned that price is definitely an important factor because a lot of businesses need to be smart about where and how they allocate their money. However, the second person I interviewed really emphasized that quality was probably the most important part, especially when making a purchase in the medical fields. Quality can make a huge difference in hospitals or medical offices.  All three people I interviewed said they would be more likely to buy the product/service in a store so that they can view it and examine it first. 

            In the third interview I conducted, I realize that my product/service would be more of a B2B type purchase. Since quality is such an important factor to consider, this purchase would most likely include more “higher” up people. Upper management and administrators would most likely make the purchase. According to all my interviews, the style wouldn’t be of importance in this case, but that quality would be essential. 

            Based on my interviews, I also learned that they thought my product was a good idea but that it might be difficult to set up a way to purchase. Since it’s like a software, it would be difficult for them to test it before purchasing it. Which made me realize that it would probably be a good idea to make a similar version that they can use, just to test it out and see if they think it’s a good purchase. 

14A – Halfway Reflection

1.    Tenaciousness is competency.

-      I have tried to become more organized to keep up with each assignment and quiz. Each assignment takes time and effort, so I have tried to keep a schedule to help me stay on track. I have worked on my interpersonal communication to be able to conduct all the interviews so far. 

2.    Tenaciousness is also about attitude. 

-   Once we began getting into the specifics of our ideas, I started to struggle. I was having a hard time putting my idea into words that would make sense. Because I was beginning to struggle with some of the assignments, it took me much more time to complete them which become a bit frustrating. Completing each assignment and staying on track with all my other school work became a bit of a hassle and that’s when I felt like giving up. However, over the time I become more tenacious and motivated to get the work done.

3.    Three Tips

-   Keep yourself organized. All the assignments are easy to keep up with if you use a flexible schedule.  

-   It helped knowing some people taking the class because in case you have any questions or doubts you can always ask them. 

-   Do everything ahead of time. Don’t try to cram all the assignments because that will make it much more stressful. You won’t feel like you need to give up. 

                                  

13A – Reading Reflecting #1

Mary Kay Ash – The life and Timeless Principles of the Founder of Mary Kay INC.

1.    About the entrepreneur.

·     The age in which she began her company was shocking. I thought she had started her company at a younger age and that, that had been her job all through life. However, the book revealed that she didn’t start her “dream company” until after she retired from her sales job. 

·      I admired her enthusiasm and tenacity. Even though people told her that she wouldn’t succeed, she never gave up. She kept pursuing her goal regardless of the challenges that came up. 

·     What I didn’t like was that she always required the women to wear skirts all the time. Of course, the times were different so I understand why she did that but in today's’ time, I think it would be unnecessary.

·     She definitely faced challenges in the start, mainly financial challenges. She also had many financial advisors and accountants tell her that her company would fail and that she wouldn’t make any profit. Nevertheless, she never let that get to her. She persisted in building her company and got help from her family. 

2.    She was really enthusiastic, which I think is one of the main reasons she became so successful. Even if she was upset or in a bad mood, she always “generated” enthusiasm when working with people. When growing up, she had to do things that most kids didn’t have to do which made her mature quickly. I think that because of her childhood, she was taught how to work hard and not give in to challenges.  

3.    It was a bit hard to keep track of time throughout the book because she tended to jump back and forth between stories. Each chapter kind of began in a different part of her life so I would sometimes get confused about what the time period was. 

4.    I would ask her:

·     If you could have begun your company when you were younger and before retiring, would you?

                                               i.     I would ask her this to see if she thinks that it would affect the way she built her company. 

·     How did you balance your work life with your family? Did mixing family with business cause any issues? 

                                               i.     I would ask this because I’ve always heard that working with your family can sometimes cause some strain with the relationship. 

5.    At the beginning of the book she mentioned what it takes to succeed: 

·     Enthusiasm (with purpose) 

·     Discipline

·     Willingness (to work, to serve, and to learn) 

·     Determination

·     Appreciation for others 

I definitely agree with her! I think these are necessary features to have if you want to become successful. She also mentioned that they take time to acquire but that it’s possible to learn over time.

12A - Figuring Out Buyer Behavior #1

Segment 

            I chose a segment of people in the medical field of study for this assignment. The interviews I conducted were with three UF students that aspire to go to medical school or seek a career in public health. I wanted to see what they would think of the product and if they thought it could be useful if implemented in medical areas of work. 

Interview Summaries 

Ø Interview 1

o  The first interview I did was with a third-year biology major who is planning to go to medical school to become a physician. I asked her if she thinks there’s a need to help people with alcohol dependency to later decrease the amount of drunk driving. She agreed that there is definitely a need, but that there is probably no immediate solution to the problem and that it would take a long time to implement the product. She believes it’s important to prevent drunk driving and that the product could be useful for that need. However, she stated that it most likely wouldn’t fix the root of the problem. 

Ø Interview 2

o  For this interview, I talked to a senior majoring in Public Health. He hopes to get a masters in health administration. He thinks the product could be useful but could be difficult for people in the medical field to implement. There are many rules and regulations about how doctors can treat patients. Similarly, to The Baker’s Act, a doctor would need to get approval from family members in order to use this product. 

Ø Interview 3

o  For the final interview, I talked to a third-year psychology major who is on the pre-med track. She believes there is an unmet need but that it would be difficult to implement the product in the medical field. She stated that it would most likely be the responsibility of a government organization to use and implement the product. She also told me that she has a close family member that struggles with alcohol dependency and has been searching for help but that nothing truly worked for her. She thinks that this product would help people find a temporary solution but that it won’t stop it 100%.  

Conclusion 

            After conducting those three interviews, I realized that it may be possible to implement the product/service in medical institutions but it would be difficult and may take a while. I also learned that there are many regulations doctors have to follow when treating a patient which could interfere with the product. However, I think it would still be worth it in the long run. I wouldn’t expect it to work immediately, but I think we would definitely begin to see its benefits after a while. Because everyone I interviewed did believe it has potential but that it would just be difficult to start up. 

            According to the interviews, they would Google what the best methods to help alcoholics to compare each one. The each stated that the best way to measure each one’s success rate is to find reliable statistics. The third person I interviewed mentioned that she has previously done this sort of research to help a close family member. Which lead her to believe that this product could work, especially if they also use the other methods available. 

            Overall, I feel that this segment has potential but would take a long time to implement. They are all aware of the unmet need but are not necessarily directly affected. For the most part, they would agree that it could be beneficial for many people but it would take a while to actually see its success.  

11A - Idea Napkin #1

1)    You. Who you are.What your talents are. What your skills and experiences are. Also: what are your aspirations? 

Ø  I am a third-year Business Administration major with a specialization in Portuguese. I hope to one day get a masters in hospital/health administration. I have a love of language and cultures and pick up languages pretty quickly. I am fluent in English and Spanish and am intermediate in Portuguese. Fortunately, I have had the opportunity to travel to many countries and have learned about a myriad of cultures firsthand. I feel that these attributes can help me work with different groups of people. 

2)    What are you offering to customers? Describe the product or service (in other words, how you'll solve customers' unmet needs). 

Ø My product would be a software that could mark someone’s ID who is an alcoholic. When they go to purchase alcohol, the cashier will scan their ID and see if they have the marker. The marker would limit and place a fine on the alcohol they purchase. The software would protect the user’s information and keep everything private. Possible employers would not be able to see it. 

3)    Who are you offering it to? Describe, in as much detail as possible, the demographic and psychographic characteristics of your customers. Think especially of this question: what do your customers all have in common?

Ø The product would be sold specifically to a government agency. The government would have to require all places that sold liquor to scan people’s IDs regardless of how old the person looks. 

Ø The product could also be sold to medical institutions. Doctors and other medical professionals could use the software with patients.

4)    Why do they care? Your solution is only valuable insofar as customers believe its value to them. Here, explain why customers will actually pay you money to use your product or service. 

Ø The government has struggled with helping people with alcohol dependency, and this could be a step in the right direction.  The product would be of great service to society because it could reduce drunk driving and essentially save lives. The product would also really help those people that want to reduce alcohol intake by limiting them. 1 in 8 Americans is an alcoholic, so this could hopefully diminish that statistic. 

5)    What are your core competencies? What sets you apart from everyone else? Also: what do you have that nobody else has? 

Ø It’s a different approach that can be used along with other options.  

Ø It respects their privacy. If they apply for a job, employers won’t be able to see the marker. 

Ø It would also be inexpensive to the people who need to use it. 

After evaluating each element, I realized that they seem to be tied together well. However, I feel that the one I had most difficulty with the core competencies. There are many different services/products that people could use instead of this one, so it was a bit difficult finding out what would make it stand out. Nevertheless, it’s still a very useful product that could truly make in impact in society, especially when used with the other products/services. 

10A - Elevator Pitch #1

 Link to video on youtube:

https://youtu.be/JuinmsJIqV8

9A - Testing the Hypothesis (Part 1)

Interview 1 – 17-year-old female 

Ø She states that she has no relatives that are alcohol dependent. Also, she mentioned that she hasn’t been personally affected by someone who was an alcoholic or severely intoxicated. She feels that since she’s in high school she is less likely to experience anything like that right now. However, she thinks that it is possible to come up with temporary solutions. 

Interview 2 – 23-year-old female

Ø In this interview, she told me how she has a distant relative that has struggled with alcoholism but that she hasn’t had been too affected by it. However, he said she was still worried about the relative. She believes that it would be difficult to solve this problem because a lot of people with alcohol dependency don’t always seek help. 

Interview 3 – 19-year-old male

Ø In this interview he mentioned that he thinks that the only main problem with alcohol dependency is when they drive while intoxicated. He said that people could easily be affected by that and that it is very difficult to prevent it all the time. 

Interview 4 – Mid 40s male

Ø Similarly, to the previous interview, he said that he thinks the problem with alcohol dependency is that people tend to lose control of their actions and can end up hurting people. He believes people could easily be affected and they don’t exactly realize it. He thinks it would be difficult to come up with a perfect solution to this problem.

Interview 5 – 20-year-old female

Ø She said that because she’s under the drinking age, she’s less likely to be affected by this situation. She believes that the people who would be most likely to be affected are those over the drinking age, but specifically people above their 40s. 

Inside the boundary	Outside the boundary
-       People with a close relationship to someone with alcohol dependency  -       People over 21	-       Possible bystanders  -       People younger than 21  -       People with alcohol dependency
-       To prevent people with alcohol dependency from causing harm to others (ex: driving under the influence)	-       The need is not just to help people affected by the actions of people with alcohol dependency, but to also help those struggling with alcohol abuse
-       The need exists because there have been many accidents caused by people under the influence	-       People with alcohol dependency have struggled with their condition and the help offered isn’t enough