Entrepreneurship Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 3

Entrepreneurship - Essay Example According to the task outline, the objective of this assignment is to develop an understanding of the experiences, motivation, and lessons acquired by individuals who have created successful enterprises. Consequently, this paper has focused on The Cambridge Satchel Company as a demonstration to help us understand to various dimensions that entrepreneurs face although till they create successful businesses. As such, the paper will analyse an interview conducted on the company’s co-founder Julie Deane (Faulkner, 2012). Julie Deane, Co-Founder, the Cambridge Satchel Company According to McGowan et al. (2012) entrepreneurs are always motivated by the desire to take control of their lives and self confidence in their abilities to run a business (McGowan, Redeker, Cooper, & Greenan, 2012). Similarly, the idea behind the creation of The Cambridge Satchel Company started from the need of Deane to transfer her eight years daughter from a school where she was being bullied. As such Dean e was faced with a situation that required more income/money. This made Deane to come up with many business ideas only to settle at an idea that involved the making of traditional leather satchels. Her target market was the school going children who were crazy about the Harry Potter kind of bag. Consequently, in 2007, with a saving of six hundred euros Deane set her business (Eccles, 2012). The first consignments were classical chestnut coloured bags, in addition to black and dark brown colours because these colours were readily available. This is a classical support of the need for entrepreneurs need to set their goals and objectives. Moreover, this business is a sole-proprietorship kind; as such the company had its share of hardships in borrowing. Another, back draw in this business form is it weak growth rate due to limited capital and exposure (staff, 2010).However, another important characteristics for any successful entrepreneurs is high risk tolerance, a feature that has enab led Deanne to be successful in her business, to date (Shah, Smith , & Reedy, 2011). The Cambridge Satchel Company initial operations were at home. Deane confesses that as a start-up business she was only able to sell one to three bags in a week. However, through her own advertising initiatives, she started distributing leaflets in the neighbourhood and in offices and clinics. In addition, the fact that Cambridge boasts of being a career town and hold a lot of traditions, many people were able to identify with the Satchels. This factor greatly helped in the growth of the Satchel demand. More so, Deane was able to make a name through fashion houses and celebrities many of whom fell for them. To make more sales she started producing the bags in more different colours so that they could match the requirements and demands of the customer. Though this, Deane has demonstrated very good entrepreneurship skills. For example, she has demonstrated the importance of relating with the customerâ €™s needs. In addition Deane confessed that even if the demand grew she has never compromised on the quality. From the interview, Deane admits that another success factor for her business is innovativeness and creativity. Notably, in diversifying her product, she realized the importance

Evolution of the World Bank Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Evolution of the World Bank - Case Study Example The World Bank is a group of five closely associated international organizations responsible for providing finance and advice to countries for the purposes of economic development and eliminating poverty. Its five agencies are: International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD); International Finance Corporation (IFC); International Development Association (IDA); Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA); and International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). The World Bank's activities are particularly focused on economically backward developing countries. These activities are in fields such as agriculture and rural development (e.g. irrigation, rural services), human development (e.g. education, health), infrastructure (e.g. roads, urban regeneration, electricity), governance (e.g. anti-corruption, legal institutions development) and environmental protection (e.g. pollution reduction, establishing and enforcing regulations). Each of these organizati ons has their own aims and objectives. The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) aims to reduce poverty in middle-income and creditworthy poorer countries by promoting sustainable development through loans, guarantees, risk management products, and analytical and advisory services. The IBRD and IDA provide loans at preferential rates to member countries, as well as grants to the poorest countries for developmental activities. Most of the times loans or grants for specific projects that may result in improvement of policy changes. For instance, loans to improve coastal environmental management that may be linked to development of new environmental institutions at national and local levels and to implementation of new regulations to limit pollution. The main activities of the IFC and MIGA include investment in the private sector and capitalizing insurance respectively (Wikipedia, 2007a). The IBRD was established in 1944 as the original institution of the World Bank Group. It is structured like a cooperative that is owned and operated for the benefit of its'185 member countries (web.worldbank.org, 2007). IBRD raises most of its funds on the world's financial markets. In 1946 the Bank had an authorized capital of $10 bi11ion, worth about 20 times as much today. However, all through its development it has been singularly garnered more controversy and criticism than any other international financial or development institution. In 1993 the Bank's total callable capital was almost $166 billion, though of that only $10.53 was paid in (Rich, 1994). The income that IBRD has been generated from the time of its inception has allowed it to fund development activities and to ensure its financial strength. As a result of this it is enabled to borrow at low cost and offer clients good borrowing terms (web.worldbank.org, 2007). From mid 1946 to mid 1986 the World Bank lent a total o f $160 billion for 4,000 different projects in around 100 countries, and has even more increased in the last few decades. By any reckoning the Bank's resources are huge (Hardy, N.D.). Till date IBRD has not suffered any losses

Human Rights Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Human Rights - Essay Example For that reason, the array of ethics and morality is really as wide as the humans. Ethics without morality is drained. Except if this association is there people inside particular groups slip into the fantasy of contemplating that their personal ethical codes employ all there is certainly to morality on the whole. They make it possible for their particular ethics to masquerade as real morality. Human rights are principal to contemporary democracy and are developed on the wrecks of Great Depression and Holocaust. A democracy does not have any perceived importance without human rights; doing away with human rights from a democracy will let it stay soulless, a vacant cylinder. Human rights are the charms in democracies cover (Perelman, 45) In several African countries, HIV outbreak are the causes of violation of human rights and this has been proved through research. The human right abuses that have been found to be responsible for these catastrophes are absence of justice, lack of availability of HV prevention, police abuse, physical torture and many more. Police, in a few areas, has strived to deliver information to MSM in Uganda and other African states and homosexuality has been proved to be the main reason behind these catastrophes. To summarize, it may be declared that ideals, morality, ethics, regulation and human rights are usually connected in an elaborate normative set. It is evident form several researches that ethics and human rights are closely related because if a person does not bear Ethics, he won’t be able to fulfil all the human rights and he would not also obey the

What is environmental security How have writers on environmental Essay

What is environmental security How have writers on environmental security challenged the notion of security - Essay Example Environmental security is labeled as a relevant subject matter in international affairs and it is being exploited to define the motives of countries under an array of contexts. For instance, the Kyoto agreement which curtails global greenhouse gases has been disputed (Ashcroft 1998) and defended (Goodman 1998) on the basis of its influence on America's national security. Warren Christopher, the former Secretary of State, proclaimed in his 1996 speech at Stanford University the resolution of the Clinton administration "to put environmental issues where they belong: in the mainstream of American foreign policy" (Matthew 1996, 39). Subsequently, President Clinton has branded environmental security as one of the many concerns that America will be confronting in the contemporary times (Broda-Bahm 1999). The fundamental concept of environmental security signifies an attempt to put more emphasis on the issues of environmental degradation through openly fastening them to previous military notions of security. According to Lester Brown (1986), the new sources of hazards occur from depletion, soil erosion, inappropriate land use, deforestation, worsening conditions of grasslands and drastic climate changes (195). Moreover, Brown maintains that these dangers not merely threaten the national economic and political security but also the equilibrium in the globalized economy thereof. The advocates of the environment-security relationship strongly upheld the belief that the perils of environmental degradation are at least ruthless as the military menaces which most apparently are integrated under the security coverage and the materialization of these fresh threats would make people reflect on the concept of national security. Hence, Norman Myers (1995) argues that national security is no long er a matter of combat and military hardware alone; it relates progressively more to "watersheds, croplands, forests, genetic resources, climate and other factors" (258) which are seldom measured by military specialists and political heads, yet needs considerable attention in order to produce an effective combination of equally crucial securities, environmental and military. The argument for environmental security can either be explained in the assertion that environmental dreadful conditions may result in security threats, such as conflicts and hostilities, or in the declaration that environmental degradation practically represents a security hazard. Nevertheless, in both arguments, advocates call for enhanced attention to the national and international significance of eco-system wellbeing, yet the second circumstance holds singular interest for students of argument because it embodies an effort to elevate the relevance of a conventionally ignored sector through definition-association with reinforced traditional importance; the environment is positioned on the schema through classification with the customary state intentions in security (Broda-Bahm 1999). This point of classification propelled the argument for an environment-security relationship through its critics. Several intellectuals writing within the umbrella of peace research perspective have roughly criticized attempts to bind environmental objectives to the notions of national security. Daniel Duedney (1991) claims that the nationalist attitude and the war structure have a time-honoured feature that are expected to resist any "rhetorically conjured redirection toward benign ends" (28). Moreover, he

Texas City Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Texas City Case Study - Essay Example The gas condensed into a liquid that was ultimately ignited by an idling truck. The workers on the crew that overfilled the tank, as well as the driver of the idling truck are in this sense directly responsible for the disaster. They violated proper procedure and those failing to intervene or report these violates are culpable. This culpability is mitigated by the requirement that fatigue workers work 12 hour shifts, in the context of normative, company-led safety violations and lack of safety training, functioning alarms and other safety equipment. The driver of the truck, while perhaps the most proximate individual trigger for the disaster, is fairly neutral in terms of culpability, having no knowledge of the gas inside the tank. Laudability and culpability are mixed, though weighted more toward culpability when it comes to the government body tasked with overseeing workplace safety. OSHA, despite issuing a warning to BP before the disaster, OSHA failed to instigate comprehensive inspections. This lax attitude nullified the lastline of defense against such tragedy. Merritt, lead investigator for the CSB, said that â€Å"the drastic effects of corporate cost-cutting† caused the fire. At the time of the disaster, the company had recently merged with Arco. Low oil prices put pressure on management that ultimately resulted in the most culpable decisions leading to the disaster; lack of investment in plant safety and infrastructure, deliberate skirting of needed safety equipment and precautions, as well as staff cuts and overwork. According to the CSB, BP managers cut capital spending and spending on maintenance in the years leading to the disaster, and following years of low investment. This was, however, an industry norm at the time. Safety features such as alarms were not present or not working, while the layout

Water from Iceland. Bottled Water Industry Speech or Presentation

Water from Iceland. Bottled Water Industry - Speech or Presentation Example In his mind, as the case tells us, he had business thoughts in his mind. Since his tour in Europe, fully funded by his parents as his graduation present, the waters of Ice land fully captivated him. For one reason, he felt that he would do good business if he started a company that was to import this water to the United States. Ice land did not have any industries. Mainly, it relied on the fish export business for its income. The idea kept ticking in his mind until he made up his mind to conduct a market research for the viability of his idea. Later in this presentation, I will discuss his findings after the research. After much thought, perhaps he realized he was more business oriented as he went into the research full throttle. It is interesting to find a fresh graduate contemplating on becoming an entrepreneur at the expense of a full time job. However, due to his business acumen, Otis was ready to make his idea a reality in case he found the industry viable enough. He was certain that if the idea were successful, the company would be a success. Water from Ice land tasted wonderful. In comparison to the United States water, what he tasted during his trip was great. He considered an imports company that would import water from Ice land and bottled it in the United States for the United States market. Armed with a business idea in his mind, he went to the market to conduct a market research about the American bottled water industry. ... Further, he gathered that there were several types of drinking water in the market. These were treated or processed water, mineral water, sparkling water, effervescence water and spring well water. Through the entire investigation, he realized that no water was from European region. This was a big opportunity for him. To make his dreams even appear more real, he realized that the consumption of water was increasing with time. Four reasons were responsible for this growth. Among these factors was increased awareness among the consumers of the impure nature of the city water supplies, increased dissatisfaction with the taste and odour of the city water, rising social influence and the increased desire for consumption of caffeine, sugar, and other coffee substances as well as soft drinks. Further, the highest consumers of bottled water were in the states of California, Texas, Florida, New York and Arizona. He also found out that the industry made numerous profits annually both on the re tail and wholesale business. For instance, in 2001, a total of $6.5 billion accrued from wholesale alone and $7.7 billion in retail. In the recent years, some companies had started importing water. Although this kept rising, between 1998 and 2000 the volumes had declined. He discovered that ice land in specific accounted for only 0.05% market share of the total water imported into the United States. With this information, Otis extended his research on two significant countries in his imported water from Ice land. The United States bottled water regulation and the economic condition of Ice land. Regulation of the bottled water industry in the United States was both at the federal government level and by various states government levels. While some states had stringent

Wearable and performance technology is surging to fashion industry Essay

Wearable and performance technology is surging to fashion industry - Essay Example Products that are both wearable and smart gadgets are used to monitor the emotions and the activity of the user (Gaimster, 2012, 170). The second is the medical and health care category. In this category, the devices require the approval of the FDA or an equivalent body, relative to the country in which the products are on sale. These devices assist in monitoring the user’s vital signs as well as the augmentation of the wearer’s senses (Editorialist, n.d., n.p.). The third is the military and industrial category. In this category, the performance and wearable technology has the ability to transmit and receive real-time data in both industrial and military environments. The fourth category is infotainment. Products under this category have the ability to transmit and receive real-time information for purposes of entertainment as well as espouse the enhancement of the wearer’s lifestyle (SportTechie, n.d., n.p.). To find out more on the employment of technology in fashion, the researcher shall undertake a primary research through use of questionnaires. These questionnaires will contain structured questions that will enable the respondent to provide their opinion on the effects of performance and wearable technology on different sectors in the economy, including the fashion industry. The respondents will be selected from the fashion industry to enable the researcher to acquire relevant information concerning the effects of technology in fashion. The questionnaire to be used for the primary research is attached to this document. Performance and wearable technology has contributed considerably to the development of fitness and wellness, especially through the devices that assist in monitoring an individual’s physical development (Scaturro, 2008, 471). The demand for Performance and wearable technology products in this category comes from professional athletes, managers of corporate wellness programs as well as consumers of recreational fitness.