Entrepreneurship and Business Venturing - Coursework Example

Entrepreneurship and Business Venturing: Reflective Essay Introduction This reflective essay is based on the two assignments that I did as part of my course work. The two assignments were based on the two projects that I did as part of a group. The first project was about developing a charity business for The Trussell Trust (TTT) in Portsmouth. The second project was about developing a hypothetical business venture of selling personal computers using SIMVENTURE. In the essay, I do two things. The first one is that I reflect on the entrepreneurial skills that I have gained as a result of being part of the two projects. The second thing is that I reflect on my personal contribution to the decision-making process and start-up activities that were carried out by my group as part of the two projects. The entrepreneurial skills that I have developed I have developed a wide range of entrepreneurial skills as a result of participating in the two projects. One of the skills that I have learnt so far is networking or collaborating with others. In theory, it is noted that entrepreneurs need to network and collaborate with different types of individuals as a way of getting social capital (Hunt & Fielden 2016, p. 30). Social capital is seen as the benefits that individual entrepreneurs usually get from their weak as well as strong interpersonal relationships with other people in the society (Hunt & Fielden 2016, p. 30). Similarly, Klyver and Evald (2012, p. 147) note that entrepreneurs are increasingly networking with each other as a way of ensuring that they get access to ideas and even other forms of resources that they may need in their entrepreneurial activities. My friends and I got involved in the TTT project during the first semester. We were merely acquaintances then but we had to collaborate with each other and develop strong ties for us to be assured of succeeding in our task. Further, in the course of doing the project, I learnt that knowing as many people as possible could turn out to be beneficial. In fact, by knowing and talking to many people in Portsmouth, we were able to figure out how exactly the RescArt (the charitable business for TTT) would eventually run. The second entrepreneurial skill that I believe I developed as a result of participating in the two projects is the ability to think critically and creatively. It is important to point out at this stage that the ability to think critically and creatively is not necessarily in-born. Allen (2015, p. 41) observes that almost everyone can dramatically build their ability to think critically and creatively. In the course of undertaking the two projects, I made a conscious effort to improve my ability to think critically and creatively. My intention was to use every opportunity to think critically and come up with creative suggestions for the business. One of the key things that provided me with an opportunity to put my skills to use and, in the process improve them, was when we had to figure out how exactly would RescArt be modelled. Of course, it was a new business so we had very few examples to copy. It was my idea that we introduce the unit of selling coffee and other drinks as part of the enterprise. I figured out that doing so would not only attract new clients to the facility but also keep our core clients happy. The third skill that I believe I have now mastered is related to solving problems. I think the SIMVENTURE project presented a lot of simulated business management problems that we had to solve. One of the things that was quite complex was how to handle the real risks of failing to break even as a result of low sales or even becoming bankrupt. Using the feedback that we got from the decisions that we made, we had to analyse the likely impact of changes in the economy on our sales estimates and how this would affect our hypothetical venture. What I found important with regard to solving such problems was how we were required to use a multiple set of skills and approaches to solve what seemed a simple and straightforward problem. It helped me understand that in a real business, problems are usually complex because they are caused by multiple factors, interact with others and produce much complex effects. Hence, being armed with only technical knowledge about an issue is not enough to help a business manager to solve all the problems that usually arise in the course of running a business. Greene (2010, p. 26) notes that the ability to solve problems is a skill that entrepreneurs will find vital throughout their careers. I must add that the ability to solve problems fast and thoroughly is what every entrepreneur needs. In the course of handling the two projects, I think that I did things that helped to improve my problem solving skills quite significantly. Also, the two projects provided me with an opportunity to improve my ability to plan and organise tasks. In the course of developing the plan for RescArt, we had to handle a lot of tasks. What was important is that many of the tasks were competing for our attention and resources. Furthermore, the tasks had a significant bearing on the outcome of the venture, depending on how well we handled them. Therefore, developing the plan for the business was a matter of continuously prioritising tasks. Furthermore, the level of importance of the tasks kept on changing and we had to respond almost immediately by adjusting our priorities all the time. In one instance, I came up with the idea of delegating several parts of the business plan to different members of the group, based on their expertise. The thinking behind this approach was that it could help us focus on only those areas we are good at and spend little time editing the final document together. This saved us a lot of time that we had spent working together on every part of plan. Reflection on my contribution There are several ways in which I contributed to the decision-making and start-up activities that were carried out by the group. Further, my contribution was instrumental in changing my thinking about the entire process and shaping my expectations for the future. What is important to note is that my contribution can best be seen within the context of the various activities that we undertook as part of setting up the new ventures. In addition to this, my contribution to the decision-making process can best be understood by examining the various instances in which we had to make highly critical decisions. Opportunity recognition and idea selection First, I think that I made a lot of contribution to the activities of the group with regard to recognising opportunities and generating ideas that could be turned into successful business ventures. Coming up with the decision to develop RescArt was a result of an intense and lengthy process of studying trends to identifying existing opportunities and developing the right ideas that could be turned into successful ventures. We had to constantly hold brainstorming sessions to help us generate numerous ideas that sounded good enough for us to focus on. It was during these brainstorming sessions that I made a significant amount of contribution to the activities of the group. Our independent research into the problems that existed in Portsmouth led us to figure out that waste management was a key area that could provide an opportunity for entrepreneurial activity. Interestingly, it is noted that identifying existing opportunities, generating ideas and selecting viable ideas are some of the key activities that are carried out during the entrepreneurial process (Rae 2014, p. 57). Similarly, Gunn and Durkin (2010, p. 24) note that for entrepreneurs to be effective in identifying opportunities that exist in the market and generating the most appropriate ideas, they have to use skills such as envisioning, research and critical thinking. In the process of deciding to develop a business for TTT, we were informed by the discovery that Portsmouth was set to experience a lot of problems associated with waste management. We figured out that the only way of doing so would be to develop a venture that could stimulate the practice of recycling waste products as a way of managing waste in the city. I made contributions during all these processes. I therefore think that my contribution to the activities of the group with regard to these activities was instrumental. Analysing the financial requirements and attractiveness of the new ventures In theory, determining the financial requirements of a new venture is a critical step of helping an entrepreneur succeed in setting up and running a business (Allen 2015, p. 221). Furthermore, determining the financial viability and attractiveness of a new venture is an important step that can be used to determine the chances of the new venture succeeding (Allen 2015, p. 221). Indeed, one of the reasons as to why many start-up ventures fail is that they run into financial problems as soon as they are launched (Besley & Brigham 2014, p. 251; Longenecker et al. 2016, p. 303). It was based on these findings that we sought to carry out a detailed analysis of the financial requirements of setting up the two ventures that we were working on. The SIMVENTURE project presented challenging scenarios. This was the case because we had to determine how much we needed to generate in terms of cash, given that we had determined the basic costs of operations of the business per month and the costs that would be incurred to assemble one personal computer. With regard to the TTT project, we had to determine the total amount of money that we needed to have in order to get the business off to a good start. We also had to project the amount of revenue that we would generate from the three distinct activities that would be carried out within the shop. Given that we did not have any good example of a similar business on which we could base our estimates, we had to rely on our judgements to come up with realistic figures. I played a key role at this stage in that I researched a lot about the manner in which our potential target customers spend their money in order to determine how much we were likely to generate from the activities of the business. Therefore, by helping to estimate figures for sales for both ventures, I believe that I played an important role in planning and making critical decisions about the two ventures. This had two key effects on me as an individual. The first one is that it helped me to be more self-confident than I had been before. The second one is that it helped me to be convinced that I had mastered the most important skills that one needs in the process of conceptualising, planning and launching a venture. Conclusion Participating in the two projects helped me to acquire different entrepreneurial skills that I did not possess beforehand and sharpen those that I think I already had prior to engaging in the two projects. Throughout the course of generating new ideas, identifying opportunities, selecting ideas that appeared viable and planning for the new ventures, I was an active participant in the groups. This helped me to make important contributions to the processes. Furthermore, my contribution was seen in the form of making suggestions about critical decisions that we were required to make in the course of the project. My Personal Development Plan What are my development objectives? Priority Which activities do I need to undertake to achieve my objectives? What support/resources do I need to achieve my objectives? Target date for achieving my objectives Actual date of achieving my objectives To gain a lot of practical knowledge about business in general and management in particular Critical 1. Select and read important business books. 2. Follow news about international business in the media that I find relevant 1. Money to access the books and other reading materials that I will require 2. Mentorship to help me get the most appropriate material. February 2016 Learn how to analyse the financial aspects of a business venture – particularly break even analysis Critical 1. Review literature about the calculation of financial ratios 2. Practice how to analyse the financial projections of a business 1. Study materials to help me understand the theoretical basis of financial analysis. 2. Support from friends who are well conversant with financial analysis March 2016 Improve my overall communication and teamwork skills Beneficial 1. Always make contributions to all the discussions that I have with my group members. 2. Make new friends every month with individuals I believe have knowledge and skills that I do not possess 1. Recommendations (informal) 2. Referrals (informal) December 2015 Review date: References Allen, KR 2015, Launching new ventures: an entrepreneurial approach, Cengage Learning, Mason. Besley, S & Brigham, EF 2014, Principles of finance, Cengage Learning, New York. Greene, CL 2010, 21st century business series: entrepreneurship, Cengage Learning, Mason. Gunn, R & Durkin, C 2010, Social entrepreneurship: a skills approach, Policy Press, London. Hunt, CM & Fielden, SL 2016, Coaching for women entrepreneurs, Edward Elgar Publishing, London. Klyver, K & Evald, R 2012, Entrepreneurship in theory and practice: paradoxes in play, Edward Elgar Publishing, London. Longenecker, JG, Petty, JW, Palich, LE & Hoy, F 2016, Small business management: launching and growing entrepreneurial ventures, Cengage Learning, New York. Rae, D 2014, Opportunity-centred entrepreneurship, Palgrave-Macmillan, New York. Read More