- Published: October 3, 2022
- Updated: October 3, 2022
- University / College: Swansea University
- Language: English
- Downloads: 4
Module No.
ECM56EKM
Forename(s) MOHAMMED KAMIL
ID Number(s) (from your student card:
COVEPM0512032
Time taken (hrs) (per student for group coursework)Faculty Date Stamp(or signature and date)
Lecturer: DR. ASAMOA-BAAH
Lab group / Tutorial group / Tutor (if applicable)
Module Code and Title
ENTREPRENEURDHIP AND INNOVATION FOR ENGINEERS
Due date:
10TH NOVEMBER 2012
Assignment No. / Title
ONE (1)
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Section B – To be completed by the assessor
Intended Learning Outcomes assessed by this work. Marks breakdownMaxAwardedDate: Total100TotalExtension Agreed until: Programme Leader Signature: Penalty Due:(Yes / No)PenaltyFinal MarkSigned internal moderator: This work may have been moderated. You may find additional comments in the work. This section may be used for feedback or other information by the lecturer:
Contents
Contents21. 0 INTRODUCTION22. 0 ANSWER TO Q132. 1 Desire for Responsibility32. 2 Ability to Communicate32. 3 Desire for Independence42. 5 Optimistic42. 7 Commitment to Innovation42. 9 Passionate about Learning52. 10 Dedication53. 0 ANSWER TO Q263. 3 Engineering skills73. 5 Competition74. 0 ANSWER TO Q38
1. 0INTRODUCTION
Innovation—whether small or incremental, large or disruptive—is about change. For most of us the idea of ” innovation” is laced with positive and desirable assumptions about something that will be shinier, faster, cooler, better than whatever we have. For some, innovation also comes with questions about whether we really need so much that is ” new”—and if the new things are so great, then how do we help everyone to get them? Those were the inspiring thoughts that prompted Jane and John to start KMobility. The discussions that followed are therefore centered on the characteristics, likely challenges and the managerial structure adopted by KMobility in their operations.
2. 0ANSWER TO Q1
An entrepreneur is one who creates a new business in the face of risk and uncertainty for achieving profit and growth opportunities and assembles the necessary resources to capitalize on those opportunities. John and Jane decided to be entrepreneurs in order to deliver value for a large under-served population. John’s challenge of having to walk upright and maintain his natural shape of his shoulders was seen as an opportunity to enter into entrepreneurship with his school mate Jane and KMobility was founded. Regardless of who sets up a business, there are always a great number of common characteristics and attributes that are shared by successful entrepreneurs. The success story of KMobility was dependent on the following characteristics and attributes of John and Jane which helped them to reach their goals in incremental and measurable stages.
2. 1Desire for Responsibility
Taking responsibility for getting things done, and doing them with care and attention, means to act like an owner. Rather than viewing problems as someone else’s, Jane and John saw the problem of the deformation of John’s shoulders as a result of using crutches as their own and took pride in finding solutions, in order to leave things in better shape than they were, and improving upon the situation rather than leaving them unattended. While a sense of ownership made for a good employee, Jane and John knew that the goal was not to be owned by the enslavement of too much responsibility. Rather than controlling situations in an attempt to possess them, Jane and John taught other people how to take charge. In that way they used individual accountability in the ultimate pursuit of profitability, teamwork, and overall success.
2. 2Ability to Communicate
John and Jane recognized that the most important part of the success of the business was the human element. Human resources–whether in the form of clients, employees, or strategic partners – are what makes or breaks a business, and communication is the key to successful relationships with people. Jane and John were able to effectively communicate their idea to the engineering students and strived hard to hone their communication skills, whether written, spoken, or non-verbal messages conveyed through body language, as it relates to sales and marketing, or specialized writing such as that needed for business proposals or mission and vision statements. Above all, Jane and John were prepared to listen and hear what others were trying to say about their business, because the best communicators got that way by first being the best listeners.
2. 3Desire for Independence
Apart from those mentioned in the scenario, John and Jane must have been characterized by the desire to be independent in thought and work as is reflected by the independence in thought attribute; they could have thought out the shock absorbing technology themselves and maintain the exclusive rights to developing the Crutch product. Their independence in thought notwithstanding, John and Jane should have further set up an independent department in KMOBILITY that can be able to research into developing new products in accordance with vision and policy of the Company that they have independently established.
2. 4Self-Confidence
Confidence is a hallmark of the entrepreneur. Not all of us are born with confidence, but that does not mean we are not capable of it. Many confident women and men gain their sense of self esteem and faith in their ability to succeed. As indicated in the scenario, Jane and John were confident to discuss their innovative ideas with their school mates and other interested parties. This created good opportunities to share knowledge on the product under discussion.
2. 5Optimistic
A positive outlook is essential for the entrepreneur, who learns to see setbacks as bargain priced tuition for the valuable business lessons gained through firsthand experience. Past shortcomings, failures, or disappointments are relegated to the past so that they cannot continue to haunt the present or obstruct the future. As in the case of Jane and John, when things went right and business prospers, this further fueled their optimism and positive mindset, which gave impetus and momentum for greater accomplishments and increased hopefulness that they could achieve all that they set out to achieve if they were determined in their effort to launch and grow the improved Crutch product. 2. 6Self-SacrificeJohn and Jane also have realized that they could not get good results for free. They ought to work tirelessly as it appears they do in the scenario but at the same time too they ought to realize that success comes with trade-offs and opportunity costs that are indispensable. The Clutch product had been able to glean some amount of market share but the Company should have been able to sacrifice more money and effort into expanding the product into any stage beyond the growth stage so as to enable it withstand competition. But this will require substantial sacrifice of both material and human nature to be able to grow and sustain competition.
2. 7Commitment to Innovation
A systematic commitment to innovation seems to yield greater benefits to more people over time. With systematic innovation, needs and opportunities are carefully understood, the search for ideas is open, and the culture nurtures the development and scaling of innovations to yield a continuous pattern of innovation. This was evidenced in the scenario as John and Jane introduced Tru-Relief foam as an addition to the shock absorbing crutch in order to obtain a full suite of world class products focused on safety, mobility and comfort for the disabled, elderly and injured.
2. 8Planning
Good entrepreneurs are also good planners. John and Jane should, in working on the various stages of the product life cycle, should have been able to engage in short term (operational) and long term (strategic planning for the business objectives). They should have been able to look into the future and envisage how the Company and its product could be positioned in the competitive environment. Long term plans should as much as possible seek to consider the product’s suitability, the Company’s competitors and the potential entry of other competitors, long term sources of finance, consumer behavior of customers and changing demographic nature of the Company’s customers.
2. 9Passionate about Learning
Jane and John were ” autodidactic” learners, which means that much of what they knew were learned not in a formal classroom setting but instead on their own by seeking out information, asking questions, and doing personal reading and research as they set up every meeting, coffee and lunch they could with people they could learn from. They were also quick to learn from their own mistakes, which mean they were less prone to keep repeating their mistakes due to arrogance, ego, or blindness to their own faults, shortcomings, or errors in judgement. To teach is to learn. And to lead, train, and impart experience to others the John and Jane constantly strived to learn more and get better educated. Because of the passion for education, John and Jane surrounded themselves with people who either knew more than they did or knew things that were different from what they knew. The scenario also showed that they entertained the views of others and perspectives that were unlike their own. In this way they continued to enrich themselves with knowledge while also making a concerted effort to grow that knowledge by sharing it with others who were also front row employees of the clutch production company.
2. 10Dedication
John and Jane dedicated themselves to the fulfillment of their plan, vision, and dream, and that tenacity of purpose was the driving gear for the growth of their innovative ideas. One of the biggest reasons that companies fail is because they lose focus. Regardless of what the effort might involve, John and Jane brought a single-minded dedication to the task by being committed to a positive outcome and ready and willing to do the needful. No matter what that might mean in terms of rising to meet a challenge or acting above and beyond the call of duty, the college roommates showed steadfast dedication.
3. 0ANSWER TO Q2
3. 1FinanceIn the beginning, John and Jane realized finance, access to capital, and relationships with lenders were integral to the success of their business. They faced the challenge of securing funding for their operations until after five years when they received the UST support funding of $10, 000 and later won an additional $35, 000. When starting a business, approximately one-third of entrepreneurs found cash flow, finance, insufficient sales volume, and pricing goods or services to be the most problematic. 3. 2StructureAnother challenge that appeared to have affected the Company is the structure. Though they are made up of John, Jane and other twelve employees, the existence of an appropriate structure could have facilitated operations across the Company. Effective innovative structures and strategies could have been adopted and implemented to make the company meet its objective and remain competitive. Organizing the new business ought to have been managed on a well structured format such as the Anthony triangle. John and Jane could have assumed positions in the strategic and tactical management levels where policies are made and business targets set and who are also responsible for injecting capital into the business. They shall also be responsible for breaking down the policies into implementable levels. The other twelve employees could have been assigned to the specific functional areas of Human Resource, finance, Production/Operations and Marketing/Relations at the operations management level, based on their expertise, where the day to day functions and activities are carried out towards the implementation of the company goals.
3. 3Engineering skills
Also, they faced a challenge of lacking the requisite engineering know-how to aid them in the scientific design and modeling of the improved Crutch product and that was why they had to hire UST engineering students to help with invention of the prototype that could incorporate the features they needed in the improved product. Though they had overcome that hurdle, they had to take it imperatively that it is necessary for them to acquire some amount of technical knowledge with respect to the products they develop and market so as to enable them take exclusive rights to their products. 3. 4MarketsAnother challenge they could be faced with was getting the right market or promotion for the Crutch product. It can be seen from the scenario that they had developed a new product in an existing market but this might not be able to offer them the right level of market they needed. In accordance with Ansoff’s strategies therefore, they could have considered using the existing product, the Crutch product, and promoting them in new markets. They could also develop a new version of the Clutch product and sell them into new markets to benefit from growth advantages of diversification.
3. 5Competition
John and Jane have not been able to properly consider a comprehensive net for the need they determined to achieve; they should have considered who their potential competitors might be as the Crutch product gains market share; they should have outlined what specific targets are required for the Crutch product to withstand competition in the macro-environment and what performance measures were required to assess the viability of the product in terms of operations.
4. 0ANSWER TO Q3
A closely-held business such as KMobility is a business owned by its managers and is also called an owner-managed business, which it can be seen that John and Jane own and manage the business at the same time. Family relationships and friends are involved with owner-managed businesses. The scenario gives an indication that the business is managed as a partnership. The structure of a partnership business has different tax characteristics and it may be that the business is not in the best trading vehicle. With regard to policy affairs, Owner-Manager Directors such as John and Jane ought to strategically plan for development across partnership-business-ownership axis and thus master the Visscher dilemma: balance business growth capital requirements with partners control catering for liquidity events for retiring /exiting partners’ shareholders. In the context of enhanced capital requirements to finance market imposed fast growth activities and other concurrent family in business transitions (e. g. succession), external equity (private or public) could prove to be indispensable to the sustainable growth of the business. John and Jane had major role to play in shaping the performance of the company. KMobility as a partnership firm possess certain dynamic capabilities, value-adding familiness and access to idiosyncratic social capital advantages which fueled its competitive advantage, which may dwindled when the economy and capital markets under perform and may relatively be suppressed when market conditions are buoyant.