20A - Growing Your Social Capital

Person #1

1) Who they are and what their background is.

Mauricio Pelaéz, he has experience in e-commerce and marketplace. He is involved in the wireless and Internet industry and has been a business developer. 

2) Which 'slot' you are filling with each person (i.e., domain expert, market expert, supplier), and how the person fills the spot.

Expert on Industry.

3) A description of how you found the person and contacted the person.

My father-in-law has contacts already in place because he is an entrepreneur. I told him about the assignment and he provided the contacts.

4) The nature of the exchange you have with the person -- what favor did they do for you? What is the return expectation? 

As an expert in the business world, he agreed to help me out with my business idea by providing suggestions on how to approach my problem and solution in my given industry. He doesn't have any return expectations. 

5) How will including this person in your network enhance your ability to exploit an opportunity?

By including this person in my network, I will be able to further understand what it takes to run a business and how to detect and approach given opportunities within the industry. 

Person #2

1) Who they are and what their background is.

Robert Felman, algorithm and app creation expert.

2) Which 'slot' you are filling with each person (i.e., domain expert, market expert, supplier), and how the person fills the spot.

Market Expert

3) A description of how you found the person and contacted the person.

Also by my father-in-law.

4) The nature of the exchange you have with the person -- what favor did they do for you? What is the return expectation? 

As an expert in algorithms and apps, he gave me ideas on how to easily create an app through means that are not expensive and possible algorithms that I could utilize within it. Again, since he knows my father-in-law pretty well, he does not expect anything in return. 

5) How will including this person in your network enhance your ability to exploit an opportunity?

By including this person in my network, I will be able to have contacts with a person has great knowledge of how to create an app. Many opportunities nowadays can be solved through apps, and since I've not yet created an app by myself, his knowledge should be a great factor in the creation of this one.

Person #3

1) Who they are and what their background is.

Paul Bonkowski, businessman currently working in a technology development company in Portland, Oregon.

2) Which 'slot' you are filling with each person (i.e., domain expert, market expert, supplier), and how the person fills the spot.

Supplier. Because he has a high level of understanding in the prototype technology area, he can give me some advice.

3) A description of how you found the person and contacted the person.

He is the brother-in-law of my brother-in-law. I went to portland recently to visit my sister, and as an enthusiast of the development of the technology, I kept in touch with what he was doing.

4) The nature of the exchange you have with the person -- what favor did they do for you? What is the return expectation? 

He provided some insight into how to implement new technology to a specific sample of people. He didn't expect anything in return.

5) How will including this person in your network enhance your ability to exploit an opportunity?

By understanding how he approaches his customers with a new idea, I can use the same strategy on my smaller sample of customers, since I know that a big company is using that one.

Finally: Reflect. This helped me in future networking events because I now know people involved in my area, so I can expand my network. The difference between this networking activity and the others is that this one was more focused on getting information from experts in the subject that I'm trying to establish, while others were quite abstract.

19A- Idea Napkin No. 2

You: I am a student at the University of Florida in the third year of the Computer Science major. I have knowledge of software development in certain computer languages and have developed 3 fully functional video games in my native country, Colombia. Within my aspirations, I want to assist with space exploration in the future with the knowledge I gain from the computer science degree I'm pursuing. Regarding my business idea, I just think the issue has been bothering long enough for me to pay more attention to it. With the knowledge of software development and the help of the police department, we can build up an app that can successfully fulfill the purpose of making every person as safe as possible while they are on the road.

What are you offering to customers: I'm offering an app that records video while you are driving, in case of an accident you can send the video and report the infraction to the police only by clicking a button (or sliding your finger through the screen). The idea is that the app will run in the background of the phone so that the person can access freely their music and GPS while driving. It will not consume memory space since each video would be deleted after closing the app unless you decide to send the video to the police which would save the video for future evidence. In the case of motorcycles, the app would also support go-pro cameras.

Who are you offering it to: I am offering it to all drivers and pedestrians. According to past interviews, they have in common that they feel in constant danger of what happens in their surroundings(while on the street).

Why do they care: Because it is their life on the line every day on the street. It only takes one mistake by a reckless driver to take a life, the less reckless drivers on the road, fewer traffic accidents will happen.

What are your core competencies: Even though there are already measures that help prevent recklessness, they are not that effective and they are expensive to the county. This app would be free for the public and infrastructure is already in place since almost everyone has a camera phone nowadays. Also, since the app would act on the command of every citizen, everyone who is present when a reckless act is happening could help to penalize the driver that the cops and cameras didn't see. Furthermore, the odds of people deciding to act against the law or endangering someone's life would eventually decrease significantly, since everyone is now capable to do whistle-blowing against what you just did.

Do they fit together? Indeed, all of the elements point to the secure development and success of the app. Not only because it affects the security of everyone, but because constantly reckless drivers get away with infractions while others with a "headlight dimmer than the other one" do not.

Feedback memo: In the last Napkin, I had to feedbacks suggesting to add more competencies to explore what actually makes my app different apart from being free. I said in this napkin that the effectiveness of its use could improve significantly society. And to connect or remove my space exploration aspiration, in which I connected it by saying that I'm currently doing computer science and engineering. Hence, why this degree could also help me significantly to develop the app itself, as a side project.

17 Elevator Pitch No.2

Most of the feedback complimented the statistics and the idea itself, so what I changed for this is that I tried to sound more secure about what I was offering. I believe that when you are explaining an idea, if you don't deliver it correctly, then no matter the content, they may not be on board because of your insecurity while talking.

18 - Create a Customer Avatar

Assignment #18 

Over the last few weeks, I have been working with the segment of UF students between the ages of 18 and 21 who drive.

Avatar Description:

1. What kind of hobbies does your customer have?

a. I consider that my prototypical consumer in this segment will have hobbies such as playing different sports (competitive and/or for fun), playing video games, participating in different clubs within UF, spending time with friends and going on road trips with them.

2. What kind of car do they tend to drive? (What color is it?)

a. Since my segment includes the prototypical college student, I will consider that most of them will still drive their first car they got from their parents. As a result, I consider that these could be used cars and/or within the economic range of vehicles. For example, a Corolla, Jetta, Civic, Elantra, or other cars within this same category. They could be any color.

3. What TV shows do they watch?

a. As typical college students, they would watch the typical stereotypes shows watched by teenagers. These include Friends, How I Met Your Mother, Orange is the New Black, Grey’s Anatomy, Lucifer, etc.

4. Do they have children? Are any of them adopted?

a. Since they are college students between the ages 18 to 20, they would not have children.

5. What are their favorite books?

a. As typical college students, I would consider that reading is not among my segment’s favorite hobbies. Because of these, I think they mainly just read books required by the different courses they are taking.

6. Who are their favorite politicians?

a. I think that overall, college students tend to be not interested in politics. However, they tend to favor politicians who are liberal.

7. How old are they?

a. From 18 to 21 years old.

8. How old do they feel?

a. I think they will feel their same age, 18 to 21 years old.

Questions:
1. What do you have in common with the customer avatar

a. Yes, in fact, I have a lot in things in common with my customer avatar. I am a student at the University of Florida within the given age range of my segment as I am 20 years old. I spend most of my free time playing video games or hanging out with my friends. Furthermore, I tend to go down to Miami, FL, at least once every two months to visit my family. I still drive my first car, a gray Jetta, which my parents gave me my last year of high school. Because of the mentioned, I can closely relate with my customer avatar.

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

a. I do not think this is a coincidence. I was able to encounter the problem with reckless driving while being a college student. As mentioned, I often go back home to visit my family; something that many other college students from UF, around my age, do. Because of this, I decided to explore a possible solution to this problem. I decided to choose this target segment, as I could closely relate to it, and due to the fact they could greatly benefit from my solution. As a result, the similarities were not a coincidence.

16 - Know Thyself

Assignment #16

1) Describe five ways in which you think you have human capital that is truly unique. What is it about you, exactly, that makes you different? Write this up in a detailed list.


Curiosity: I do agree that this is my main unique human capital as I always on google researching about new things I want to find the answer for. I like to actively learn and I do not leave any of my spontaneous questions unanswered.


Analytical Skills: I am very rational as my interviewee mentioned. Because of this, I am able to see problems in a unique way.


Compassion: I am very compassionate about people who are in need and specially for animals in need. I try to help whenever I can, as I believe in the goodness of people and the importance of helping others out because you never know when you will be in their shoes.


Sense of duty: I feel responsible to help others that do not have what I have. Moreover, I feel that I should strive to better this world any way I can.


Perseverance: I do not give up until achieving my goals. Even when facing challenges, I am able to stand up and keep going as I do not like to disappoint anyone.


2) Interview the five people who know you the best.


Interviewee 1: Father - Juan Gabriel Ruiz
https://soundcloud.com/user-439829469/florida-international-university-2

He is a unique individual with high integrity, maturity, rationality and responsibility. He is very observant and a good listener. Given the need of others, he does not doubt in instantly assist them. He has great sensitivity and great humanistic value. He is very compassionate with other living beings as well as animals. Moreover, he haas analytical intelligence skills, persistence and determination. He leads when necessary and guides and persuades with words and actions. It is his mixture of solidarity, maturity, sense of duty, respectfulness, and compassion that make him unique.

Interviewee 2: Sister - Gabriel Ruiz
https://soundcloud.com/user-439829469/audio-2019-10-17-18-40-37

He is a young man capable of various things. He puts family and friends first and has great emotional and intellectual intelligence. He looks at the different options before making a decision. He values loyalty and friendship. He has extreme kindness, something that sets him apart from the rest. As a result, he is always putting people first. Moreover, he is very curious and brilliant. He loves to explore new things and achieve new challenges. He will do great things in life.

Interviewee 3: Best Friend - Alexandra Rodriguez
https://soundcloud.com/user-439829469/alexandra-rodriguez-garcia

I know him for four years now. By only knowing him this little time, I have been able to see some of his qualities and strengths that set him apart from the rest. He is very curious, as a result he is always coming up with new intriguing questions that he wants to find the answers to. He goes above and beyond to find the answers to these questions and does not stop until finding them. Moreover he has an excellent moral compass. This guides all his actions and decisions which are shaped by the principles and values he learned from his parents. Lastly, what truly differentiate him from the rest is his kindness towards people in need and animals. Without a doubt he will do great things in life.

Interviewee 4: Best Friend from Colombia - Carlos Vargas
https://soundcloud.com/user-439829469/carlos-vargas

He is polite. He is willing to get in trouble in order to help other people. He used to fight in MMA to release stress. He loves animals as much as I do (he is a vet), and he is willing to do anything for them. He is a very intelligent and likes anything related to math and physics.

Interviewee 5: Friend from Colombia - Javier Hurtado
https://soundcloud.com/user-439829469/aud-20191017-wa0026

He is a great person. I know him since eight grade. Although at first he can be rough, after knowing him better you will discover his big heart. He is always there for his friends and we all know that we can count on him any time, regardless of what I am asking for.

3) Reflect on the differences.
Overall, I think that most of the responses I got were really similar. Because of this, it can be concluded that they look at me in similar ways. They all mention my curiosity, kindness, compassion, critical thinking skills and moral values. I think that the way I see myself is pretty similar to the way other people see me.

15 - Figuring Out Buyer Behavior

Assignment #15


In this assignment, I interviewed three people that are within the segment I selected in a previous assignment: UF students between the ages 18-21 who drive. I interviewed: Celeste Velazco, Jean Garcia, and Javier Gutierrez.

Alternative Evaluation

Interviewee 1: Celeste Velazco
What matters the most? (Price, quality or style): For this interviewee when buying she truly values the quality of the product. As a result, she is willing to spend more money for a higher quality or better product.
Is there more than one factor important to the customer?: Yes, for this interviewee two factors matter: Quality and Price.

Interviewee 2: Jean Garcia
What matters the most? (Price, quality or style): This interviewee values the most the price of the product or service he is purchasing. He considers that as a college student he has limited money to spend reason why his purchasing decisions are based on money.
Is there more than one factor important to the customer?: No, he thinks that price is the main factor that influences him.

Interviewee 3: Javier Gutierrez
What matters the most? (Price, quality or style): For this interviewee, quality and the features of a product are what truly matter. Because of this, he spends the amount needed to obtain the best products in the market.
Is there more than one factor important to the customer?: As mentioned, for this interviewer two things matter the quality and features of the product and/or service.

Purchase Decision

Interviewee 1: Celeste Velazco
Where are you more likely to buy? (Online or in-store): She is more likely to buy online.
What is your payment method? (Cash or financing the purchase): She normally utilizes her credit or debit card.

Interviewee 2: Jean Garcia
Where are you more likely to buy? (Online or in-store): He is more likely to buy online.
What is your payment method? (Cash or financing the purchase): As the last interviewee, He is more likely to pay with her credit or debit card. However, for small purchases he utilizes cash.

Interviewee 3: Javier Gutierrez
Where are you more likely to buy? (Online or in-store): He is more likely to buy in store.
What is your payment method? (Cash or financing the purchase): He utilizes her credit or debit card.

Post-purchase evaluation

Interviewee 1: Celeste Velazco
What matters most to your customers when they think back on the 'rightness' of the purchase?: If the product fulfills her quality expectations based on the price she paid then she feels satisfied.
What helps them determine the purchase was a good idea?: If the product lasted the right amount of time she considers appropriate with the money she invested, she considers the product a good investment.
What sorts of things make them think a purchase was a bad idea?: Whenever she feels she wasted her money in a product that did not satisfy her expectations.

Interviewee 2: Jean Garcia
What matters most to your customers when they think back on the 'rightness' of the purchase?: He considers the purchase ‘right’ if he does not regret haven spent the money on the product.
What helps them determine the purchase was a good idea?: Since he is really cost oriented, he is satisfied is the product if he feels that he would spend money again for the product.
What sorts of things make them think a purchase was a bad idea?: When he regrets having purchase the product and is looking for ways to return it.

Interviewee 3: Javier Gutierrez
What matters most to your customers when they think back on the 'rightness' of the purchase?: If the product and/or service has higher quality than expected he considers it a right purchase.
What helps them determine the purchase was a good idea?: If he enjoys all the features of the product/service and it is not expecting more.
What sorts of things make them think a purchase was a bad idea?: When he is left with the feeling of wanting more.

Conclusion

By looking at the different responses, I am able to conclude that my segment is particularly interested in the features, quality and price of the products and services they are buying. Since my idea involves the creation of an app, the price of the solution can vary depending on whether the app will be offered for free or not. Its main stream of revenue could be ads within the app and a percentage from the money collected from the tickets. Considering the quality and the features, I will want to make sure that the app offers all the different things possible consumers want.

14A – Halfway Reflection

1) Tenaciousness is a competency. What are the behaviors that you have used (or developed) to keep up with the requirements of this course? 

Ironically (because of post 13), persistence. Even though is a straight course, it kept asking to analyze the same problem over and over until we have a concrete answer. I know we are still going to do that, but I think thats the point. Learning to create and develop an opportunity takes time and persistence.

2) Tenaciousness is also about attitude. Talk about a moment or two when you felt like "giving up." What pulled you through? Do you feel like you've developed a tenacious attitude during the past two months? What experience or experiences most contributed to this?

In the past weeks, I felt like giving up on certain parts of my career. I guess is a "normal" feeling, but is tough when it happens. People around me pulled me through, reminding me who I am and what I want. I'd guess that I've become more tenacious. The development of an actual idea in this class has helped me with my Tenaciousness.

3) Three tips. What are three tips you would offer next semester's student about (1) fostering the skills that support tenacity and (2) developing the 'tenacious mindset' ?

1. Stay on the path. It is easy to deviate to another idea that may seem better, leaving the first one half done and useless. 

2. Believe in it and you'll see how others support you. Sometimes you may think the idea is not worth it or that nobody will go for that, but if you believe in it and say it out loud you may be surprised how others need the development of it.

3. Ask for opinions. If you ask for opinions about the idea, other people could give you valuable information on how you might want to approach the subject. This will help you to construct a firm idea and to stay on track.

13A – Reading Reflection No. 1

Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald's by Ray Kroc

1.

• The thing that surprised me the most was the determination of Kroc to achieve something big.
• I admire the persistence of Kroc, he clearly states over and over that that's the only thing that helped him create the brand we know as McDonald's.
• Even though he created something that big, he had to sacrifice a lot of his personal life. That's clearly a workaholic-like trait that I didn't like.
• He faced failure and adversity a lot of times, even though he says he was great at selling stuff, he never got a break until he was in his 50's. The only thing he did and therefore comes with the title of the book... he kept "grinding it out".

2.  He exhibits ambition and persistence.

3. There is a part that didn't exactly confuse me, but he argued that he didn't want to be only a vendor to his company. He ended up being a vendor and a partner to the company. He wanted to maximize his sales profits to his customer and as a partner the highest quality for franchisees to maximize their profit and therefore his. This surprised me, it was smart.
4. I know persistence is part important of your book's lesson but did that persistence came through the moment the McDonalds brothers showed you their system, or you were showing it with every business on the way?
Would you do everything as you did it? taking into account what you've lost in your personal life and what you gained monetarily?
5. I think he would say that hard work is different in the different areas, and what matters is not the knowledge you have, but the persistence you show to have what you want. I agree that it is an important factor, but I don't think is the only one when accomplishing goals. Maybe in business but not in all.

12A – Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 1

1) Pick a segment. 

The segment that I have chosen is UF students between ages 18-21 that drive.

2) Find three people who would fit that segment and arrange to interview them.

The first is a female student, age 20, who drives a car. The second one is a male student, age 19 who drives a scooter. Finally a male student, age 21, who drives a pickup-truck.

3) Begin with need awareness. 

1. According to the questions answered during the interview, she becomes aware of the need when she is about to get out of her apartment complex. In order to get on the road she has to turn left without a traffic light, in which case is necessary to know when exactly you can go. This situations normally causes her stress because she doesn't know if the other drivers are prepared to stop in case something happens. Afterwards the need is constant until she arrives to her destination.
2. This student becomes aware of the need when he jumps on his scooter. "After I put my helmet I just hope for the best", he says,"but afterwards I'm constantly afraid because my scooter cannot go faster than 40 mph, so drivers that want to drive faster than that start tailgating me". He argues that he normally takes streets that the limit is 40mph, nevertheless people still become impatient.
3. This male student also fears for his safety even though he drives a truck. He argues that the need becomes apparent when he drives roads with more than one lane, since people with smaller cars cut his truck because they think they fit in little spaces. He also says that drivers who brake too late too hard can cause an accident on the roads. Gainesville has some hills that cause cars to rely on the brakes of the car in front, if they break too late then his life could get in jeopardy because the truck takes more time to decelerate. 

4) Move to information search. 

The three of them don't have a specific solution to the problem since they cannot control how other people drive. Instead, they just have to be extra cautious and act like nobody knows how to drive. Only in extreme cases they call the police, with the hopes that the driver gets some kind of penalization. 

5) Report the findings of your research. 

There are numerous ways people become aware of the need. It depends on: from where you are commuting, what roads you are taking, and what vehicle you are driving.

6) Draw conclusions. 

This segment although composed by teenagers which have the highest rates of accidents, shows that most of them are aware of the reckless drivers that are on the road every day. Also shows the need for the solution in a more general matter.

11A – Idea Napkin No. 1

You: I am a student at the University of Florida in the third year of the Computer Science major. I have knowledge on software development in certain computer languages, and have developed 3 fully functional video games in my native country, Colombia. Within my aspirations, I want to assist with space exploration in the future. Regarding my business idea, I just think the issue has been bothering long enough for me to pay more attention to it. With the knowledge of software development, and the help of the police department, we can build up an app that can successfully fulfill the purpose of making every person as safe as possible while they are on the road.

What are you offering to customers: I'm offering an app that records video while you are driving, in case of an accident you can send the video and report the infraction to the police only by clicking a button (or sliding your finger through the screen). The idea is that the app will run in the background of the phone so that the person can access freely their music and GPS while driving. It will not consume memory space since each video would be deleted after closing the app, unless you decide to send the video to the police which would save the video for future evidence. In case of motorcycles, the app would also support go-pro cameras.

Who are you offering it to: I am offering it to all drivers and pedestrians. According to past interviews, they have in common that they feel in constant danger of what happens in their surroundings(while on the street).

Why do they care: Because is their life on the line every day on the street. It only takes one mistake by a reckless driver to take a life, the less reckless drivers on the road, less traffic accidents will happen.

What are your core competencies: Even though there are already measures that help prevent recklessness, they are not that effective and they are expensive to the county. This app would be free for the public and infrastructure is already in place since almost everyone has a camera phone nowadays.

Do they fit together? Indeed, all of the elements point to the secure development and success of the app. Not only because it affects the security of everyone, but because constantly reckless drivers get away with infractions while others with a "headlight dimmer than the other one" do not.