Assignment 21A - Reading Reflection No. 2 - Darren Liebegott

Assignment 21A - Reading Reflection No. 2 - Darren Liebegott

For this assignment I chose to read and reflect on Thinking, Fast and Slow, by Daniel Kahneman

1) What was the general theme or argument of the book?

The general theme of this book is that there are two systems in our brains, one conscious and one automatic, that work in different ways and somewhat dictate the way that we make decisions. This book suggests that the more we understand these systems, the better we can utilize them to make the decisions that we need to grow personally and professionally.

2) How did this book, in your opinion, connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT3003?

This book connected with and enhanced what I am learning in this course by illustrating the way that our minds work when faced with important decisions. The way that we handle these decisions tend to shape and form our interactions with others, and they can lead to successes and failures depending on the circumstances. What Kahneman talks about in this book is critical to what entrepreneurs are faced with regularly while trying to create successful businesses.

3) If you had to design an exercise for this class, based on the book you read, what would that exercise involve?

An interesting idea for an exercise that could be implemented for this class based on the content of this book would be to have students make business decisions based on certain circumstances to see what the consequences may be. By doing this in practice, it could help to foster a more responsible decision making process when faced with these decisions in real life.

4) What was your biggest surprise or 'aha'' moment when reading the book? In other words, what did you learn that differed most from your expectations?

The biggest surprise in this book for me was in learning that the human mind is actually quite lazy compared to its own capabilities. Many times we make the types of decisions that are easiest for us, rather than utilizing our mental strengths to optimize our decision making process. This allows us to focus on more things at once, while not fully accomplishing what we are capable of on one specific task. Learning to concentrate harder on one thing at a time actually leads to accomplishing more, and with greater quality.

Assignment 20A - Growing Your Social Capital - Darren Liebegott

Assignment 20A - Growing Your Social Capital - Darren Liebegott

For this assignment I have contacted three people that are related to the idea that I have for my business. One is a domain expert, one is a market expert, and the other is a supplier. Here is the information that I gathered from this social capital experiment.

Domain Expert: For this category, I reached out to an old colleague of mine via Facebook Messenger to discuss his opinions on the market today. He has been working on the technical side of the cellular and internet provider industry for quite some time now. He spoke with me briefly and I was enlightened to hear from someone in the industry that my service is something that has been missing in the industry for quite some time. He mentioned that the company that he has been working for sets strict guidelines on the prices they can offer customers, and that a mediation effort could work to provide more reasonable rates. Including him in my social capital network gives me valuable inside information that I may not be able to attain on my own.

Market Expert: The second person that I spoke with was a social services employee who works firsthand with struggling families to help them to be financially independent. First, I emailed a friend who had some connections into this field, and this led me to a phone interview with the social services employee. She told me that one of the most frustrating parts of her job was allocating the correct budget for these families. She said that finding housing, employment, and medical services took some time and energy, but that finding the right prices for all of their services was extremely frustrating. She mentioned that she had pleaded with some of these services providers on the behalf of these families to lower their prices to no avail. I found it quite interesting to hear the argument from someone that was already mediating but needed a service with industry experience to help her. Having this contact will be rewarding because I know there is a lot that my service can do to help these families and social service employees.

Supplier: I reached out via email to a manager of one of the larger service providers that offers a wide range of services. He told me that not only was my service unnecessary, but that I was liable to get myself in trouble by trying to implement it. I told him that I knew that not everyone would be a fan of the service, but that would not stop me from planning the business. He was impressed with my resolve and ensured me that if I had any questions in the future he would not mind giving me advice moving forward. Even though this contact didn't seem to be valuable at first, I was surprised at how someone who opposed my idea was still willing to help me when he realized that I had drive and motivation. I think this connection will be valuable in the future when I need an industry expert to test ideas on.

Reflection: This assignment was interesting in that I needed to target experts in the field that I am considering moving into. This was challenging, but the end result was that I have a better understanding of what I am up against with this business concept. Also, getting crucial feedback about my business idea from people who are in the industry made this concept feel much more real. It seemed as if I was really onto something, and I was surprised at how interested and engaged these professionals seemed to be regarding my idea. This assignment was challenging, yet also rewarding.

Assignment 19A - Idea Napkin No. 2 - Darren Liebegott

Assignment 19A - Idea Napkin No. 2 - Darren Liebegott

1) You. Using the feedback that I have received from the last assignment I have gathered that I am hard-working, determined, motivated, and focused. I have experience working a full-time job while going to school. This has taught me that perseverance is extremely important for reaching your goals. Regarding my business concept, I feel that this business could have a tremendously positive effect on my life if I were to implement it. This is because I would be working as an entrepreneur while helping to solve a common problem that many people have.

2) What are you offering to customers? I am offering customers a service that will help them to save on their internet, cable, and cellular services while receiving the quality of services that they need. This is made possible by mediating between customer and service provider to connect the right customer with the right service provider at a price point that is reasonable for both parties.

3) Who are you offering it to? I am offering this service to customers that have busy home lives and are on a budget from month to month. This service is tailored towards families that need reliable services while being price sensitive. In the long run, I see this service being beneficial to all demographics as we move towards a more fair way to price these services.

4) Why do they care? Most people struggle with accepting how much they pay for their internet, cable, and cellular services. This is not to say that they all cannot afford them, but if they could save money on these services they could use the savings towards more important issues.

5) What are your core competencies? My core competencies are a passion towards solving this problem for everyone that needs reasonable rates, strong determination when setting out to achieve a goal, and the strength and perseverance to work hard even when things look bleak.

Summary: With all five of these points being made, I feel that I have the motivation and drive to work towards creating this service. The challenges that I will face will be gaining the right expertise and resources to scale this business at a rate that will provide a return worth continuing with the service.

Feedback Memo: The feedback that I received on my last assignment helped me to narrow my focus on this assignment. The two qualities that I incorporated from the last assignment were 'motivated' and 'focused'. These are important when trying to build a business.

Assignment 18A - Create a Customer Avatar - Darren Liebegott

Assignment 18A - Create a Customer Avatar

What kind of hobbies does your customer have? What kind of car do they tend to drive? (What color is it?) What TV shows do they watch? Do they have children? Are any of them adopted? What are their favorite books, and who are their favorite politicians? How old are they? How old do they feel?

The customer segment that I chose as my Avatar was young to middle-aged families that rely heavily on their cable, internet, and cellular services in their daily lives. The kind of hobbies that this customer segment has range from watching live sporting events to online gaming. They tend to drive SUV's and full-size sedans. The TV shows that they watch range from the Disney channel to live up-to-date news coverage. These families tend to have between one to five children. Many of the books that appeal to this customer segment are academic, but also fictional novels. The political views of this segment are divided. Some tend to be quite conservative while others believe in a more progressive approach. The adults in this customer segment tend to be between late 20's to early 50's. Some may feel older than their age suggests due to the rigors of their daily lives.

 What do you have in common with the customer avatar? If you have anything in common with the avatar, do you think that is a coincidence? Why?

I have many things in common with this customer avatar. I think we can all relate with the challenges placed on families today with prices constantly rising, and trying to find the correct services for our needs. In thinking about the customer segment that I chose to start with, it reiterated to me the importance of my service. 

Assignment 17A - Elevator Pitch No.2 - Darren Liebegott

Assignment 17A - Elevator Pitch No. 2

Reflection of feedback from the previous pitch: 
The feedback that I received from the previous pitch helped me to approach this one more proactively. Rather than starting with an introduction, I began this pitch with a hook to help the customer realize the importance of the service. I am still working on shortening this pitch.

What did you change based on this feedback?
Based on the feedback that I received from the previous pitch, I was able to begin more constructively while not including a formal introduction. This helped me to initiate the conversation about the service more smoothly.

Assignment 16A - What's Your Secret Sauce? - Darren Liebegott

Assignment 16A - What's Your Secret Sauce?

Five Ways That I Have Human Capital:

1. I have an ability to see things from multiple perspectives. It is important when making business decisions to evaluate what is best for yourself, the business, and the customer.
2. I have perseverance to get me through the tough times. It is important to understand the end goal when you need that extra push to keep going. 
3. I have motivation to reach the goals that I set out to achieve. This helps me to stay positive when things aren't going as planned.
4. I have discipline that helps me to provide quality service, even when the payoff isn't quite what I would like. Staying disciplined creates continuity, which is a major quality of a successful business.
5. I am dependable. This is extremely important in creating customer loyalty.

Interviews:

1. In my first interview, I was told that I had a great deal of passion. This was expressed due to the amount of effort that I put into my construction projects in the past.
2. My second interview revealed that I had a willingness to help people develop professionally. This is something that I feel strongly about and I think is missing in many organizations.
3. My third interview showed that I value working relationships, and show respect to those around me. This is an important characteristic to keep in mind when fostering positive morale in the workplace.
4. The fourth interview that I conducted revealed that I have an inner-optimism that helps me to stay positive. I think this is very important for any entrepreneur, because there will always be naysayers and doubters.
5. My final interview showed me that I actually have a way of actively trying to find common ground with people I work with. It is easy to get caught up in your personal tasks each day, but being able to understand others and work towards commonalities creates a dynamic working environment.

In declaring for this assignment, I must include that I have had complications with the recordings of my interviews. While I had them recorded, I was unable to save them correctly and that hindered me from being able to upload them for this assignment.

Reflection:

What I found to be most interesting about this assignment was the way that I interpreted my human capital, and the feedback that I received. It seems that I see certain qualities in myself that are somewhat basic in comparison to the feedback that I received. While I see myself as dependable, reliable, and motivated, my interviewees saw deeper into these qualities and helped me to realize how I actually use them on a daily basis. This exercise has helped me to be more aware of the way that I am utilizing my strengths in the business environment.

Assignment 15A- Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 2 - Darren Liebegott

Assignment 15A - Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 2

For this exercise, I have interviewed three people that fit my segment category and evaluated the reasoning behind their purchases, and their post-purchase behaviors.

Interview #1: My first interview was with a gentleman that was recently using two different providers for his internet, cable, and cellular services. He explained that he was tired of having to keep up with two different bills and wanted to bundle all of his services, but had much trouble finding a provider in his price range. He searched the internet to find the provider of his choosing, and finally came to a compromise on price just to bundle. He paid online via credit card and was dissatisfied with the price, but ultimately felt relieved with having one bill instead of two.

Interview #2: My second interview was done over the phone with a gentleman that I once worked with in construction who reflected on his decision to try a new provider that offered him a price that could not be matched by the existing carriers. He mentioned that while he was at a store looking for a new work phone, he was approached by a sales rep for a new low cost provider that claimed they could save him 50% on his cellular services. He bought his phone up front and allowed the sales rep to transfer his services. He was happy to be saving so much money up front and liked the new phone that he chose. After a few weeks went by he claimed that the cellular service that he was receiving diminished, and he was having trouble contacting anyone from the company. He ended up cancelling his service and going with a major service provider that cost him about as much as it did previously. In retrospect, he admitted that going with the newer service was an error in judgment, and that he should have just gone with a proven provider.

Interview #3: My third interview was done with a lady that works as an executive administrator for a local company. She tried using the same provider as the one that her firm uses on their business account, but claimed that they were not very responsive to individuals needs as their target market was more business to business. She decided to call three different companies to get price quotes before making a decision, and decided that she wanted to bundle as many services as possible. After deciding on the provider of her choice, she was happy with her decision to price shop as this proved to save her money.

Analysis: Based off of these interviews it is clear that people have different ways of approaching purchases. Some feel comfortable talking face-to-face with a company before they purchase, and others are more comfortable doing research online or calling multiple companies. Most often pre-purchase expectations do not match up with post-purchase evaluations. This is typically because the customer is taking someone at their word and things to not work out the way they expected them to. The best course of action seems to be doing as much research as possible before making a purchase, via internet and by conversing with multiple providers. Most customers do not have the patience for this type of due diligence, and this is where my service will provide value for the customer up front and through savings over the life of the purchase.