Assignment 30A

 After reviewing my old posts from this course, I would say the most formative experience was creating the bug list. It appeared easy at first, but I was running out of ideas around the fifth one. It was difficult for me to put together 15 more bugs in my life and explain them. This caused to me to really think outside of the box and be much more observant of my surroundings rather than blindly accepting them. Recognizing why things are the way they are allowed me to develop a solution-driven mindset, which is crucial for entrepreneurs. 

My proudest moment was making my final elevator pitch for my product. For my first pitch, I tried to make it as informative as possible, but I was nervous going into it and it was noticeable that I was tense in my first pitch. By the second one, I was more knowledgeable and more invested in my business concept, which I think helped me loosen up some more. By the last one, I felt that I knew my product very well and was able to explain its purpose with ease. This assignment helped me with my entrepreneur mindset as well. It is important for entrepreneurs to be both knowledgeable and passionate about their business concept. It promotes confidence, which can help sway customers and investors alike. 

I have two recommendations for students taking this class in the future. The first is to find a concept you are truly passionate about. We go into great detail with our concepts and the best way to stay committed to this class is to be able to write about something you care about. My other piece of advice is to speak to anyone you can about your product. Not only will you need to for interviews, but it will help you refine your market greatly and give you new ideas and perspectives about your product you may not have previously considered.

Assignment 29A

 The service I am offering is a recruiting firm that works specifically to place recent college graduates into jobs they are qualified for at small to mid-size businesses. This business concept could be marketable across the country and its demographic is college students and small business owners. It has become increasingly difficult for recent college grads to find work they are suiting for and as of now, there are not any recruiting firms that have addressed this need. My solution is to create a recruiting firm dedicated to placing college grads at entry level positions. Firstly, the recruiting firm would have to build a large portfolio of small to mid-size businesses that are interested in finding new young talent but do not have the hiring resources a larger company would. The window of opportunity for this business concept is as long as the needs of college students are unmet.

Once my recruiting firm has built its catalog, the firm would hire "on-campus reps" across the country to network on their respective campuses. When they find candidates on campus that interested in receiving free hiring assistance, the rep emails the candidate's résumé to the firm, and from there the candidate will have a phone interview with the firm to refine their search based on desired career path, job location, salary, etc. At this point, the recruiters take the reins in the career search and notify the potential candidates if they have an ideal position.

My business concept has both customers and clients. The ideal clients for this firm are small to mid-size businesses. These businesses are ideal because they do not receive as many applications from recent grads as Fortune 500 companies would. it is difficult for students to find these companies on their own and this is where my recruiting firm would come in. The ideal clients would be looking for long-term placements, as they are small firms. This would allow my firm's customers to take entry-level positions and have a lot of room for career growth within the business.
My ideal customers for my business concept are college seniors intending on graduating within one year. These students would typically have a business background and interested in working in a professional office setting. It is also important to note that this service would be mainly directed at non-STEM students that are not planning on going to graduate school, as these students typically do not have as much difficulty finding work compared to those with only Bachelors' degrees.

My product is valuable to both my customers and clients for various reasons. My customers need this service because it is so difficult for many students to find work after they graduate. Furthermore, these students are more interested in a career than a job. My firm's portfolio would have small to mid-size businesses that are looking to hire driven candidates at entry level that want to move up the ladder and take on leadership roles in the business in the future.
My clients need my product because small to mid-size companies do not have the same draw to many students as the nationally recognized companies. My service would help these businesses gain exposure at the university level and tap into high-level talent they would not be able to find on their own.

I believe that I am in a very unique position as I have first-hand insight into all three parties of my business concept: students, recruiters, and small business owners. As a student planning on graduating in six months, the need to find an ideal job and career is a need I know very well. I have talked to many of my peers and I believe they feel the same way. Last summer I interned at a recruiting firm and learned a lot of the inner workings of recruiting firms and how recruiters search for candidates. Lastly, I have a couple family members that run small businesses and I have seen how they struggle to find quality candidates at the entry level despite how many of them look for these candidates specifically. My knowledge of all three of these parties would allow me to successfully integrate and apply my business concept.

The next step for me is to reach out to recruiting experts with my project to move forward. While I have some knowledge of the recruiting industry, I am far from an expert and I would need to add a partner to reach my goals with this business venture. Furthermore, I would be tasked with creating a portfolio of small businesses to partner with on this business venture. In the next decade, I would like this company to be operating at the regional level, working Florida schools and businesses.

Assignment 25A

Interview 1:

For my first interview, I spoke with a rising senior studying finance that plans on graduating in spring of 2021. He liked my initial idea a lot. His suggestion was for the firm to not only place recent undergrads, but add classes or guidance for students early into their college careers so they can look for jobs on their own. He thinks mot students are left in the dark for the hiring process and thinks all students could use some job searching skills and ways to make themselves more marketable to employers.

Interview 2:

My next interview was with a small business owner in Tampa. While he liked my idea, he also suggested that my firm look for internships for college students. He believes if his company got a good intern from my recruiting firm, it could help students get hired earlier than their senior year.

Interview 3:

For this interview, I talked to a student at UF studying business administration. She also thought seeking out internships for students would be a possible move forward.

From these three interviews, I believe the next move for my venture is focusing on current students and not just recent or soon to be graduates. Placing students for internships was something I had thought about briefly, but I was not sure it would be successful because I believed that it is mostly larger companies that offer internships.

 The issue is these bigger companies do not need recruiting firms to find interns because they receive so many applications but my interview with a small business owner has me second guessing. I was under the impression that smaller businesses do not offer as many internships and my company would not be able to consistently place students. However, my interviewer said he would be willing to hire interns as a "trial run" for an entry level job. This would also allow smaller companies to get their foot in the door with top incoming talent before they are hired by Fortune 500 companies.

Interview 4:

I spoke with a sophomore studying business administration. He is planning on searching for internships this fall. He said he would be very interested in using a recruiting firm to find him and internship and potentially a job after. He thinks the toughest part of implementing this is exposure among college students. He thinks it can be successful if students know about my business concept.

Interview 5:

For my final interview, I discussed my business concept with an undecided incoming freshman. She thought this was a great idea and surprised it had not been thought of yet. I told her it would be mostly small to mid size companies and her concern was the availability of internships for students like her. Internships are uncommon for small companies so I would have to convince smaller companies looking for interns to come onboard with my business concept.

Assignment 24A

The service I am offering is a recruiting firm that works specifically to place recent college graduates into jobs they are qualified for at small to mid-size businesses. It has become increasingly difficult for recent college grads to find work they are suiting for and as of now, there are not any recruiting firms that have addressed this need. My solution is to create a recruiting firm dedicated to placing college grads at entry level positions. Firstly, the recruiting firm would have to build a large portfolio of small to mid-size businesses that are interested in finding new young talent but do not have the hiring resources a larger company would.
Once my recruiting firm has built its catalog, the firm would hire "on-campus reps" across the country to network on their respective campuses. When they find candidates on campus that interested in receiving free hiring assistance, the rep emails the candidate's résumé to the firm, and from there the candidate will have a phone interview with the firm to refine their search based on desired career path, job location, salary, etc. At this point, the recruiters take the reins in the career search and notify the potential candidates if they have an ideal position.

My business concept has both customers and clients. The ideal clients for this firm are small to mid-size businesses. These businesses are ideal because they do not receive as many applications from recent grads as Fortune 500 companies would. it is difficult for students to find these companies on their own and this is where my recruiting firm would come in. The ideal clients would be looking for long-term placements, as they are small firms. This would allow my firm's customers to take entry-level positions and have a lot of room for career growth within the business.
My ideal customers for my business concept are college seniors intending on graduating within one year. These students would typically have a business background and interested in working in a professional office setting. It is also important to note that this service would be mainly directed at non-STEM students that are not planning on going to graduate school, as these students typically do not have as much difficulty finding work compared to those with only Bachelors' degrees.

My product is valuable to both my customers and clients for various reasons. My customers need this service because it is so difficult for many students to find work after they graduate. Furthermore, these students are more interested in a career than a job. My firm's portfolio would have small to mid-size businesses that are looking to hire driven candidates at entry level that want to move up the ladder and take on leadership roles in the business in the future.
My clients need my product because small to mid-size companies do not have the same draw to many students as the nationally recognized companies. My service would help these businesses gain exposure at the university level and tap into high-level talent they would not be able to find on their own.

I believe that I am in a very unique position as I have first-hand insight into all three parties of my business concept: students, recruiters, and small business owners. As a student planning on graduating in six months, the need to find an ideal job and career is a need I know very well. I have talked to many of my peers and I believe they feel the same way. Last summer I interned at a recruiting firm and learned a lot of the inner workings of recruiting firms and how recruiters search for candidates. Lastly, I have a couple family members that run small businesses and I have seen how they struggle to find quality candidates at the entry level despite how many of them look for these candidates specifically. My knowledge of all three of these parties would allow me to successfully integrate and apply my business concept.

The next step for me is to reach out to recruiting experts with my project to move forward. While I have some knowledge of the recruiting industry, I am far from an expert and I would need to add a partner to reach my goals with this business venture. Furthermore, I would be tasked with creating a portfolio of small businesses to partner with on this business venture. In the next decade, I would like this company to be operating at the regional level, working Florida schools and businesses.

Assignment 23A

1. Organizational skills
1. Value: This is crucial for entrepreneurs as businesses have a lot of moving parts that need to be monitored at all times.
2. Rare: This is not a relatively rare skill, but not everyone has it.
3. Inimitable: Organizational skills can be developed, but some struggle with it more than others
4. Non-substitutable: It is very difficult to replace. An unorganized business will usually fail.
2. Knowledge of Customers' Wants
1. Value: I understand what college students are looking for in their future career and I think I have an advantage in providing that.
2. Rare: There are millions of college students, but they may not think about the solutions like I have.
3. Inimitable: It could be imitated by other college student, but I believe that few would be pursuing this business concept and more focused on their own business career.
4. Non-substitutable: This has been attempted by career resource centers at universities, but I believe this business concept could be more successful because I believe I see the needs  and mindset of undergraduates better.
3. Recruiting Industry Knowledge
1. Value: For my business concept to be properly executed, I must have knowledge about the recruiting industry and its practices.
2. Rare: There are currently recruiters employed, but very few are recruiting in at the entry level for recent graduates.
3. Inimitable: This would be difficult for a recruiter to imitate, because they would most likely be out of touch with the needs of recent undergrads.
4. Non-substitutable: It could possibly be substituted with sales knowledge, but it would likely be less effective.
4. Small Business Knowledge
1. Value: The value of this skill is understanding the needs of my recruiting company's future clients. Their needs vary from the hiring needs of a Fortune 500 company and this knowledge is necessary to effectively execute this business model.
2. Rare: Most people with small business knowledge are small business owners and would not have the recruiting knowledge necessary to succeed.
3. Inimitable: This knowledge can be learned by spending time working for a small business.
4. Non-substitutable: This is difficult to substitute because a lack of understanding of small business hiring processes will result in a failed business model.
5. Communication Skills
1. Value: This is essential for any business owner but specifically for this concept because I will have to be able to effectively communicate to university students, recruiters, and small business owners alike.
2. Rare: Good communication skills are not uncommon, but being able to articulate oneself to all three parties above is no easy feat.
3. Inimitable: This is difficult to imitate because few people lack the specific background I have gathered.
4. Non-substitutable: It is nearly impossible to succeed with this idea without effective communication skills.
6. Passion
1. Value: This is important for this business concept because this concept has not been done before. It is a long road ahead and passion is crucial to get this idea off the ground.
2. Rare: Passion itself is not uncommon, but there are not many university students familiar with recruiting firms that would be able to find passion for this business concept.
3. Inimitable: I believe it would be easy for one to develop passion for this project.
4. Non-substitutable: Passion for the solution could be substituted with passion for financial success, but I believe the owner would lose touch with student needs and business owner needs if this were the case.
7. Approachability/Availability
1. Value: This is extremely important for this business concept because the business owner has to be able to "win over" its clients and employees. This also very important for the recruiting process of my business.
2. Rare: This is an obtainable skill, but it comes easier to some than others.
3. Inimitable: This is inimitable, but some clients and employees can be difficult to "win over"
4. Non-substitutable: If the firm is not enticing to clients and students, it will fail.
8. Commitment
1. Value: For this business concept to be successful, one must be committed to finding ideal jobs for recent grads and meeting the needs of the small businesses in its catalog.
2. Rare: This is a coveted skill that few truly possess.
3. Inimitable: It can be imitated by someone very committed but it is difficult to fake.
4. Non-substitutable: Commitment is absolutely essential to this business concept.
9. Leadership
1. Value: This skill is important for creating and directing a recruiting team.
2. Rare: This is an uncommon skill to thrive at.
3. Inimitable: A good leader could run this company, but they need industry expertise.
4. Non-substitutable: A group of very autonomous recruiters could potentially run a firm like this, but it would be difficult without effective leadership and direction.
10. Work Ethic
1. Value: Without work ethic, it would be impossible to effectively place recent grads at work and build a catalog of small businesses.
2. Rare: This is a rare trait that is highly sought after.
3. Inimitable: This can be imitated by very driven individuals.
4. Non-substitutable: Recruiting requires diligence and attention to detail, especially for placing recent grads. This simply cannot be done without hard work.

After this analysis, I would say my approachability and availability is my most valuable resource. I believe this skill will allow me to collaborate with high level recruiters on this project as well as win over small business employers for their hiring needs.

Assignment 22A

https://youtu.be/U2M2GhFSHig

I recieved mostly positive feedback on my last elevator pitch, highlighting my voice was loud and clear and my pitch was easy to follow. I was really happy with what I wanted to say in my second pitch, so I did not make any changes to it. I tried to relax more as that was my main criticism on the initial pitch and make myself appear more comfortable talking about my business concept.

Assignment 20A

Domain Expert:
I was able to come in contact with my domain expert through my summer internship at a recruiting firm last year. He is the president of the technologies and engineering sector of his firm with nearly 20 years of experience in the recruiting industry. I contacted him and introduced myself and let him know I wanted to discuss my business concept with him and briefly described it. Hopefully he will be able to provide me with some expert insight on how to move forward with this project. This contact could benefit him because I introduced him to a new concept in his industry that he has yet to explore. I believe with his experience in recruiting and my knowledge of current undergraduate needs, we can contact a wide array of customers and clients for this product.

Market Expert:
I thought the Career Connections Center at UF would have a similar market to my own and I sent an email about my business concept. Because my business concept serves the purpose of placing recent undergrads, I have a lot in common with the goals of UF CCC and we could potentially collaborate to come in contact with more students in the future.

Supplier:
For my supplier, I decided to contact the vice president of operations of a popular job searching board, as nearly every recruiting firm uses these to find talent for their clients. She has been working for the company for 15 years and has held her position for eight. I found her contact information online and reached out to learn more about how job searching boards work and a little bit about my business product. Hopefully, we would be able to help each other, as I have no experience working with technology development and her company has yet to specifically cater to college grads.

Reflection:
I believe I gained a lot from completing this assignment. I contacted three people who have seen much success in my industry and I have showed them how I can assist them. Hopefully, I could one day collaborate with one if not all of them. This helped change how I look to network because I had to conduct extensive research on each of them. I learned they are all highly regarded in their fields and I made sure to acknowledge their professional accolades when I reached out to them. I believe they are likely to be more responsive because I proved that I truly value their expertise and opinion and took the time to understand what they could offer before I reached out.

Assignment 17A

https://youtu.be/rzE5fdwCX9Y

In all of the responses I received on my elevator pitch, the most common critique was I needed to relax. I was kind of tense in my first pitch and was not using hand gestures. I was able to get my point across, but I appeared uncomfortable in the process which can be perceived as off-putting. For this second elevator pitch, I tried to relax a little more and use hand gestures. I also was able to cut my time down for this pitch to keep it at 90 seconds.

Assignment 18A

My customer avatar is a fourth year business major two semesters away from graduating. He is outgoing and spends a lot of time on campus and hanging out with friends. He interned at a Fortune 500 company last summer, and did not really like the culture and is interested in working somewhere smaller following graduation. He is middle class and gets decent grades in his classes. He has student loans and is only planning on pursuing a Bachelors' degree. He likes meeting new people and outdoor activities. He is involved on campus and has a pretty strong résumé. 

Although my customer avatar is a year behind me, we have a lot in common. My social circle is important to me and I like spending time with friends and making new ones. I am more interested in a smaller company than a larger one as well. I am not as involved as my customer avatar on campus, but 

I have a strong résumé I built on professional experience. It makes sense that we have a lot in common because I created this business concept to solve my own problem: worrying about finding an entry level job following graduation.

Assignment 19A

1. My name is Jackson Gore. I am a senior studying Food and Resource Economics with a emphasis on Agribusiness Marketing and Management. I would like to pursue a career in business and one day become an entrepreneur. I hope to one day make my business concept a reality and be able to help college students find jobs after they graduate.

2. The service I am offering is a recruiting firm that works specifically to place recent college graduates into jobs they are qualified for at small to mid-size businesses. It has become increasingly difficult for recent college grads to find work they are suiting for and as of now, there are not any recruiting firms that have addressed this need. My solution is to create a recruiting firm dedicated to placing college grads at entry level positions. Firstly, the recruiting firm would have to build a large portfolio of small to mid-size businesses that are interested in finding new young talent but do not have the hiring resources a larger company would.
Once my recruiting firm has built its catalog, the firm would hire "on-campus reps" across the country to network on their respective campuses. When they find candidates on campus that interested in receiving free hiring assistance, the rep emails the candidate's résumé to the firm, and from there the candidate will have a phone interview with the firm to refine their search based on desired career path, job location, salary, etc. At this point, the recruiters take the reins in the career search and notify the potential candidates if they have an ideal position.

3. My business concept has both customers and clients. The ideal clients for this firm are small to mid-size businesses. These businesses are ideal because they do not receive as many applications from recent grads as Fortune 500 companies would. it is difficult for students to find these companies on their own and this is where my recruiting firm would come in. The ideal clients would be looking for long-term placements, as they are small firms. This would allow my firm's customers to take entry -level positions and have a lot of room for career growth within the business.
My ideal customers for my business concept are college seniors intending on graduating within one year. These students would typically have a business background and interested in working in a professional office setting. It is also important to note that this service would be mainly directed at non-STEM students that are not planning on going to graduate school, as these students typically do not have as much difficulty finding work compared to those with only Bachelors' degrees.

4. My product is valuable to both my customers and clients for various reasons. My customers need this service because it is so difficult for many students to find work after they graduate. Furthermore, these students are more interested in a career than a job. My firm's portfolio would have small to mid-size businesses that are looking to hire driven candidates at entry-level that want to move up the ladder and take on leadership roles in the business in the future.
My clients need my product because small to mid-size companies do not have the same draw to many students as the nationally recognized companies. My service would help these businesses gain exposure at the university level and tap in to high-level talent they would not be able to find on their own.

5. I believe that I am in a very unique position as I have first-hand insight into all three parties of my business concept: students, recruiters, and small business owners. As a student planning on graduating in six months, the need to find an ideal job and career is a need I know very well. I have talked to many of my peers and I believe they feel the same way. Last summer I interned at a recruiting firm and learned a lot of the inner workings of recruiting firms and how recruiters search for candidates. Lastly, I have a couple family members that run small businesses and I have seen how they struggle to find quality candidates at the entry level despite how many of them look for these candidates specifically. My knowledge of all three of these parties would allow me to successfully integrate and apply my business concept.

I believe these five elements are very connected in this case. Elements 1 and 5 show my background and that I both have passion and first-hand knowledge about my business concept. Elements 2, 3, and 4 shows why this product is needed, who will use it, and how it would work.

The feedback I received was mostly positive, but I learned that more students are interested in working for a small to midsize company because there is more room for professional growth than at larger corporations. I also wanted to include that this product is mostly for students not planning on attending graduate school and non-STEM majors. I have learned these individuals often find a fitting job easier than students with just Bachelor degrees so I wanted to specify what kind of students this service would be for.

Assignment 14A

Looking back on the first half of this course, I noticed there are several behaviors I have had that have helped me with this course. One of which is discipline. I work an 8 hour job on Mondays and Wednesdays, meaning I do most of my work on Tuesdays and Thursdays for this class. It would be easy for me to not do any work Tuesday as the Friday deadlines seem so far at that point. however I learned pretty early on in the semester that it is nearly impossible to create three quality posts in just one day. I have really made an effort to get a head start early in the week on my homework to spare myself the stress later in the week.
One of the biggest motivators for me in this class has been how close I am to graduating. In my opinion, this class can be a bit of a handful and sometimes find the assignments to be a repetitive and I sometimes wanted to give up. I have been able to pull myself out of this thinking and get back on track by remembering that I am planning on graduating in the fall. I want to be able to finish strong and get a good grade in this class and I definitely do not want to have to retake this class, so that has been a big motivator for me.
One piece of advice I would give to a student taking this class int he future is to find something you are passionate about for your business concept. It is easy to cruise through the early assignments, but it pays off to take the bug list seriously and come up with a business opportunity that you can and want to talk about because you will be working on that for the majority of the assignments in this class. Another piece of advice I would give is to create your own schedule. I have learned that this is not a class you should be procrastinating in. Set yourself with hours to watch videos and time to complete assignments to see the most success in this course. Lastly, do not be afraid to reach out to friends and family for advice. This course requires a lot of creativity and sometimes it can be helpful to bounce ideas off of people. The more perspectives you collect, the better your knowledge of your product will be. It will also help when you need to interview for assignments, because your friends and family will already have a basic understanding of the product.

Assignment 12A

Segment:

The segment I have selected for this assignment is upcoming college graduates studying finance or accounting. While my business concept would have customers with any kind of professional background, I expect my concept to be most appealing to this segment.

Interview 1:

My first interview was with my roommate who is graduating in December with a degree in accounting. He said he would ideally like to work for a big four accounting firm, but he is intrigued by working for a small business starting as an accountant and working his way up to an executive position, which is much tougher to do at a large accounting firm. Lately he has been struggling in his career search and would love if my service was available for him so he could receive professional help in his job search. He said he has looked for jobs online on sites such as Glassdoor and Monster, but it is hard to refine the search to opportunities he is both interested in and qualified for.

Interview 2:

I conducted this interview with a family friend who is a business owner. He said he does not search for new talent often because it is a small organization, but he likes candidates fresh out of college because they are usually more driven at the start and more likely to stay at the company long-term compared to those who have been int he work force for a while and hopped form one job to the next. He said young candidates are ideal, specifically in finance and accounting because they can be groomed for upper level financial positions like a CFO. Despite his business's affinity for entry-level talent, they have struggled to find it because the business does not have the name recognition of larger companies. He has went to career fairs to find entry-level employees, but he said his booth is often overshadowed by larger firms. They typically hire quarterly, so twice a year he hires at the same time as when university semester end: January and June.

Interview 3:

I interviewed one of the recruiters at the firm I interned with and she said finance and accounting candidates are some of the easiest to recruit and hire, but they are currently in excess. They are easy to hire because certifications such as CPA's are required and are easier to get up to speed than positions that require soft skills, such as marketing or sales. She said because there are so many candidates with finance backgrounds looking for work, they do not all get to work for Fortune 500 companies and would most likely take work at smaller firms if they need to. She said her firm does not typically recruit for entry-level positions, but when they do it is hard to find candidates unless they specifically contact the firm, which is uncommon.When they do look for recent grads, they search for résumés on job sites like Monster and very few recent grads publish their résumés here.

Findings:

These interviews confirmed my hypothesis that my business concept is appealing specifically in the field of finance. I found there are a lot of people in finance out of work because they do not know where to look and a lot of small companies that want entry-level candidates that are unable to successfully tap into the candidate pool. I believe it would be much easier to put small businesses and candidates in touch with each other with a recruiting firm and the use of on-campus reps.

Assignment 11A

1. My name is Jackson Gore. I am a senior studying Food and Resource Economics with a emphasis on Agribusiness Marketing and Management. I would like to pursue a career in business and one day become an entrepreneur. I hope to one day make my business concept a reality and be able to help college students find jobs after they graduate.

2. The service I am offering is a recruiting firm that works specifically to place recent college graduates into jobs they are qualified for at small to mid-size businesses. It has become increasingly difficult for recent college grads to find work they are suiting for and as of now, there are not any recruiting firms that have addressed this need. My solution is to create a recruiting firm dedicated to placing college grads at entry level positions. Firstly, the recruiting firm would have to build a large portfolio of small to mid-size businesses that are interested in finding new young talent but do not have the hiring resources a larger company would.
Once my recruiting firm has built its catalog, the firm would hire "on-campus reps" across the country to network on their respective campuses. When they find candidates on campus that interested in receiving free hiring assistance, the rep emails the candidate's résumé to the firm, and from there the candidate will have a phone interview with the firm to refine their search based on desired career path, job location, salary, etc. At this point, the recruiters take the reins in the career search and notify the potential candidates if they have an ideal position.

3. My business concept has both customers and clients. The ideal clients for this firm are small to mid-size businesses. These businesses are ideal because they do not receive as many applications from recent grads as Fortune 500 companies would. it is difficult for students to find these companies on their own and this is where my recruiting firm would come in. The ideal clients would be looking for long-term placements, as they are small firms. This would allow my firm's customers to take entry -level positions and have a lot of room for career growth within the business.
My ideal customers for my business concept are college seniors intending on graduating within one year. These students would typically have a business background and interested in working in a professional office setting.

4. My product is valuable to both my customers and clients for various reasons. My customers need this service because it is so difficult for many students to find work after they graduate. Furthermore, these students are more interested in a career than a job. My firm's portfolio would have small to mid-size businesses that are looking to hire driven candidates at entry-level that want to move up the ladder and take on leadership roles in the business in the future.
My clients need my product because small to mid-size companies do not have the same draw to many students as the nationally recognized companies. My service would help these businesses gain exposure at the university level and tap in to high-level talent they would not be able to find on their own.

5. I believe that I am in a very unique position as I have first-hand insight into all three parties of my business concept: students, recruiters, and small business owners. As a student planning on graduating in six months, the need to find an ideal job and career is a need I know very well. I have talked to many of my peers and I believe they feel the same way. Last summer I interned at a recruiting firm and learned a lot of the inner workings of recruiting firms and how recruiters search for candidates. Lastly, I have a couple family members that run small businesses and I have seen how they struggle to find quality candidates at the entry level despite how many of them look for these candidates specifically. My knowledge of all three of these parties would allow me to successfully integrate and apply my business concept.

Assignment 10A

https://youtu.be/BfbkCIJcTY0

Assignment 9A

Interview 1: Local Recruiter

I conducted an interview with one of the recruiters I worked with at my internship last summer. When I discussed my solution to finding jobs for recent college graduates she confirmed my suspicions about why recruiters are not often utilized by college graduates. Because most recruiters look to place experienced candidates in temporary jobs, the recruiters at her firm do not yet have to resources to begin placing recent grads. If this were to take place, there would have to be a completely separate branch of recruiters focused solely on placing individuals new to the labor force and would require training slightly different than the training they what currently receive at her recruiting firm. The recruiting done at her firm, like most, is compartmentalized, meaning there are branches that specifically hire IT, health science, business professionals, et  cetera and placing recent college graduates would be no different.

Interview 2: College Junior

This interview was conducted with a 3rd year university student studying general business. He said while there is absolutely a need for many college students, particularly in business fields, to receive professional help, this is not always the case. This student recently received an internship with a well-known marketing firm this summer and the firm usually offers a full time position post-graduation to interns who see success in their program and this would not be necessary for him and others with internships that hire immediately. He also claimed this may not be a need for undergraduate students planning on attending graduate school as these students often find jobs easier than a students with bachelors degrees.

Interview 3: Small Business Owner

I was able to interview my neighbor who has been a small business owner for the last decade. He sees this as a big need for not only the students but his company as well. As a small business looking to grow, he often seeks out candidates that are recent graduates because these employees are often looking for something permanent or semi-permanent and would be able to develop professionally along with the company. This can often be difficult for him to find as his company is small and he only hires a handful of employees per year compared to the Fortune 500 companies that hire dozens if not hundreds each year. These companies also have superior hiring resources as well as brand notoriety that allows the candidates to flock to them, leaving his company along with smaller ones with candidates that may not be as ideal as the candidates hired by larger firms. He believes that if a recruiting firm existed that focused on hiring recent college graduates, the most applicable customers would be smaller to mid-size companies that do not have the hiring capabilities of larger companies.

Interview 4: Recent College Graduate

I conducted this interview with a friend that graduated college two years ago. She said the job search for her was very difficult as she had zero experience looking for work prior to graduation and almost no professional connections to network through due to lack of professional experience. While she is content with her current job, she is actually overqualified for her job based on her résumé and higher education compared to some of her colleagues and believes if a service like this existed for her when she was in college, she may have a job more suited to her skill set.

Interview 5: Recent College Graduate

This interview was done with a college graduate who graduated this past spring semester. He has struggled to find a job due to the outbreak of COVID-19 and would have appreciated having a recruiting firm assist him in finding an ideal placement. He has a technology background and is interested in working for a larger tech company because he believes that would provide him with more expert knowledge about his work and the tech business itself than a smaller or mid-size firm would be able to provide. In normal circumstances, he would have preferred a larger firm, but he would have been willing to work for a smaller company for the time being because he wants to start working as soon as possible. 

	Inside the             Boundary	Outside the Boundary
Who is in	Recent college graduates with a business background Small to mid-size companies A recruiting firm or sector dedicated to hiring recent grads	Experienced candidates Recent graduates with STEM backgrounds  Large companies or Fortune 500 companies General recruiting firms Students planning on attending graduate school
What the need is	Assisting recent college grads in the hiring process who have little to no experience searching for jobs Facilitating the hiring process for small to mid-size companies	Helping experienced professionals find work  Placing students at Fortune 500 companies
Why the need exists	It is difficult for many recent graduates to find jobs that fit their interests and skill sets It is difficult for small to mid-size companies to get access to a high-level candidate pool of entry-level employees	Students want to work for large, well-known companies Students are looking for work after graduate school  Large companies need assistance finding high-quality, entry-level candidates

Assignment 8A

The one opportunity that I examined that I found was most important to myself and my peers is how difficult it is for recent college graduates to find jobs they are qualified for. This has been an issue for at least a decade and has become increasingly difficult, particularly now with the prevalence of COVID-19 in the United States. Prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, it was difficult because most recent grads have little or no experience searching for jobs. Additionally, every person in the graduating class is entering the job market simultaneously seeking a limited amount of jobs. It is even worse now because much more experienced candidates are competing for these jobs because they were laid off or furloughed due to the virus.
I believe the solution to this problem can be solved by recruiting firms. Recruiters are experts at matching candidates to the ideal job for them and vice versa. They work with both the companies hiring and the candidates themselves to find their exact needs and skills and are able to find a fit that leaves both parties satisfied. Most recruiting firms focus on finding placements for temporary work, so they do not work with recent grads often. However, I believe if there were a recruiting firm dedicated specifically to placing college students or if an existing recruiting firm were able to expand to meet the needs of recent college grads.
The recruiting firms would be able to gain exposure on campuses by offering internships to current students. The firms would be able to hire current students as on-campus "reps" for their university and work for commission as a typical recruiter would. The ideal on-campus rep would be a student studying business, marketing, or communications and is interested in a career in recruiting or sales. The duty of an on-campus rep would be to reach out to students on campus, particularly seniors, that are looking for work following their graduation. If students are interested, they would send their résumés to the rep and schedule an interview with a recruiter so they can get a better idea of what the candidates are looking for specifically, including type of work, location, and salary. From this point, the students could spend more time focusing on classes and extracurricular activities while the recruiters search for jobs for them.

Assignment 7A

Opportunity: Recent college graduates in the United States struggle to find jobs they are qualified for after graduation due to the overflow of applications to jobs at major companies and a lack of resources, such as recruiting firms, necessary to find niche jobs that are being overlooked.

Interview 1:

I interviewed one of my former roommates who graduated recently. He was able to find a job with an accounting firm he had interned with the previous summer. He agreed that it is tough for college graduates to find a job because they often look for work at companies that are household names and these positions are often extremely competitive. He said the campus itself provides a lot of resources to help students get hired and that is how he found his internship, but it is not always enough for a lot of students. I asked if he knew about students seeking out recruiting firms to find work, and he said he thought that would be very uncommon and had not even considered it himself. he said he had not considered this because he associates recruiters with temporary work and most college students are looking for permanent positions.

Interview 2:

I interviewed my former boss from my internship at a major US recruiting firm. I wanted to talk to him because recruiters are experts in filling the needs of companies looking to hire with the ideal candidate for the position. He said that he does believe recent graduates are at a disadvantage for finding jobs compared to the rest of the workforce primarily due to hundreds of thousands of individuals simultaneously entering the job market seeking out jobs that require the same levels of experience. He used the analogy of a funnel to depict how only a select few end up with entry level jobs at Fortune 500 companies specific to their background and the others are often left working jobs they are overqualified for and could have gotten with just a high school diploma. I asked if his firm had worked with recent graduates and he said very rarely. This is because the company is rarely contacted by recent grads and an even bigger problem is the companies his firm works with often hire new graduates internally. He said the companies that would require assistance finding entry level talent are usually not partnered with recruiting firms due to their size and if they are, they do not hire nearly as many students as the larger Fortune 500 companies do.

Interview 3:

I interviewed a friend from college who is a second year engineering major. She agreed that it is tough for most new graduates to find jobs but not all. She claimed this is need is not as needed for certain majors and career paths. For example, students that are studying pre med or pre law often follow their undergraduate studies with graduate school, so this would not be needed for those students.

Interview 4:

I interviewed my father about this opportunity because he is an entrepreneur and a small business owner. His company uses a recruiting firm for some of their hires but very rarely do they hire new graduates or any new candidates at all. As a small business, there is not a lot of employee turnover and only ask their recruiting firm for new talent just a few times a year. 

Interview 5:

I interviewed one of the recruiters I was able to shadow for a few days during my internship last summer. She said the major reason why her recruiting firm as well as most recruiting firms do not place recent grads often is because most of the job placements she has to fill are temporary jobs. For the most part, recruiting firms hire mostly for temporary and contract work, so recent graduates are not getting this kind of help and are often left on their own to look for work.

After my interviews about this opportunity, I have learned that there is a need, but the need I described may need some tweaking. My third interview helped me recognize that this is not a need for all college students and may be more major-specific. This need is much more applicable to students with a business background compared to graduates with a STEM background. Furthermore, I originally believed that recent grads did not have enough access to recruiting firms due to students not understanding how to use a recruiting firm, but it may be the opposite. Most recruiting firms have not taken the time to establish a recruiting system for new graduates and could potentially require a completely different branch within firms to meet the needs of new grads. Additionally, many of the large Fortune 500 companies do not have problems finding candidates and do not seek out recruiters to fill these jobs. Smaller to mid-sized businesses would have to rely more on recruiters to connect them to candidates that would not find these positions on their own, but they would not have as many open positions as bigger companies. For this opportunity to be met, recruiting firms would have to obtain business from many more smaller firms than they would for a larger business.

Assignment 6A

Economic Opportunity 1

From my own personal experience as well as some online research, I have found that recent college graduates, who have struggled with finding jobs prior to the virus, are at an even greater disadvantage due to the spread of coronavirus throughout the US. This was a major issue prior to the viral outbreak because they had to fight for job placements with their peers all simultaneously looking for work. Now it is even more difficult because they have to compete with older candidates that are often overqualified for these jobs but are desperate for any kind of work. 

I believe there is an opportunity for these new graduates in the recruiting industry. For the most part, recruiting firms typically looking for older candidates and look to fill temporary or contract jobs. If these recruiting firms begin working with new graduates, and even current students looking to the future, there may be opportunities fro young graduates that they may not have had access to searching on their own. In addition, many of these recruiting firms are scrambling to place candidates due to the rapid influx of unemployed Americans. These firms could likely use more recruiters during this time to help fill positions and search for open jobs. By hiring new graduates as recruiters, the unemployment rate would effectively lower as unemployed individuals could take jobs as recruiters and work to find jobs for other unemployed Americans. 

The prototypical customer would be recent college graduates as well as Americans that have been in the job market with a sales or recruiting background with strong interpersonal skills. While there is a need for this opportunity, it may prove difficult due to the current lack of companies looking to hire as well as recruiting firms may not be in the position to be hiring.

It was relatively easy for me to see this opportunity from my own personal experience. I am graduating in December and the lack of open jobs currently is concerning for my peers and myself. I also interned with a recruiting firm last summer, and I have a good understanding of the recruiting industry and some problems arise.

Economic Opportunity 2

Another opportunity I found that has been overlooked by the general public is the United State's rare earth supply. Rare earth metals are used in almost all modern technology, including cellphones, computers, and cars. It is also used in US military equipment. The major problem is that the United States, as well as the rest of the world, rely almost entirely on China for its rare earth supply. China controls nearly 90% of the rare earths market and if political tensions rise with China, the United States could see an embargo of rare earths, which could severely cripple US consumption of rare earth goods as well as the US military. It is very hard to produce domestically as the mining process is incredibly damaging environmentally and would be costly in terms of time and capital for a company to receive all the licenses to safely and legally mine rare earths and it could take years for a US company to turn a profit

The opportunity I see with this economic issue is the expansion of MP Materials, the only American company that currently produces rare earth metals. It has taken five years and billions of dollars for the company to get to a place where they can legally mine in the US, but they currently mine a minuscule amount of rare earths in comparison to China's production and cannot compete with their prices. My solution to this problem is for the US to either subsidize MP Materials and possibly encourage more companies to begin producing rare earths to meet the rare earth needs of the US.

The prototypical customer is MP Materials and possibly entrepreneurs with a resource production background to begin or increase rare earths production to decrease China's comparative advantage on rare earths. This opportunity may be difficult to implement mostly due to the costly environmental standards required by the US.

I was able to discover this opportunity because I was able to work at a small rare earths mine in Brazil last summer and there I learned about how much control China currently has on the rare earths market internationally.

Regulatory Opportunity 1

One of the regulatory issues I saw was that across the state of Florida was hair and nail salons as well as tattoo parlors have opened or will be opening soon. This is being done to begin reemploying individuals and helping boost the economy. The major issue with this is that the virus is still spreading and this could increase its spread even more. 

A possible solution to this problem is to make some of these jobs on-call is possible as well as making access to the businesses appointment only in order to limit the amount of people in the shops and give employees time to adequately sanitize the equipment and stores. The prospective customers for this opportunity is employees working at hair salons as well as immuno-compromised individuals that may not be able to safely leave their home. This seems to be relatively simple to implement, but the major problem is the employees could possibly be at risk entering an unsanitary home and limiting to appointments would not allow these businesses to return to normal. I discovered this opportunity when I got a less than ideal haircut from a family member and I thought with the proper precautions, a barber would be able to come to my house and safely cut my hair.

Regulatory Opportunity 2

Throughout the global of COVID-19, the Center for Disease Control has urged people to begin working as contact tracers. Contact tracers are tasked with communicating with those diagnosed with COVID-19 and question who they have come in contact with in order to better understand how and how fast this disease is spreading as well as being able to notify individuals that may have unknowingly come in contact with. The CDC recently lowered the requirements to become a contact tracer to just a high school diploma in order to increase the amount of applicants for this job. 

The opportunity I considered is an emphasis on finding contact tracers on college campuses. College students would be ideal for this position because it is a pool of very intelligent and organized individuals that could have a background in medicine. In addition, college students are ideal now because it is summer and most students are have a light course load or none at all and have the time to commit to this job. Many students have lost internships or research opportunities due to the virus and this would allow them to develop professionally and receive paychecks when they thought they could not otherwise. This appears to be relatively easy to implement by marketing towards universities specifically to notify more college students about this opportunity. I was able to discover this opportunity because I have a roommate that is studying medicine and is struggling to find somewhere to volunteer so he can collect more experience in public health before applying to medical school. I know he is not the only one in this situation and I believe making this job more known to premed and pre-nursing students would be very beneficial.

Assignment 5A

Local Opportunity 1

A rent and eviction crisis is looming next week

Source: https://www.tampabay.com/opinion/2020/05/26/a-rent-and-eviction-crisis-is-looming-next-week-column/

Summary: Starting June 2nd, Florida landlords will be able to evict its tenants after a 3 month prohibition of these activities due to the spread of COVID-19 throughout the state. This  is a major issue specifically to the state of Florida because the state has the fourth highest number of renter-households and 50% of which were struggling to pay their rent prior to the spread of the virus. The author of the article highlighted some ideas for the state to implement to lighten this burden, but it is unlikely to completely negate the losses that Floridian tenants, landlords, and the economy itself will face.

Local Opportunity 2 

Virus detours driver's license testing

Source: https://www.gainesville.com/news/20200528/virus-detours-driverrsquos-license-testing

Summary: Due to the changes occurring globally from the outbreak of COVID-19 in the United States, the Florida Department of Motor Vehicles have had to change the test for new drivers to obtain a license. The test examiners will no longer be in the car with prospective drivers and will communicate with drivers through a phone or walkie-talkie and the test will be done on a closed course.Florida DMV's have been closed since March and local offices are now given a choice to reopen when desired  and implement the new testing procedures. There has been criticism as some claim one cannot conduct an adequate driver's test without being in the car. Furthermore, examiners will not be able to see how new drivers interact with traffic on the road as well as driving through intersections will no longer be observed with this procedure. The alternative is to have examiners in the car with the drivers while wearing face masks, but this poses a larger risk of infection for examiners as well as prospective new drivers.

Local Opportunity 3

Universities weigh options for fall semesters

Source: https://www.gainesville.com/news/20200507/universities-weigh-options-for-fall-semester/1

Summary: The spread and uncertainty of COVID-19 has left university students and administrators unsure of how classes will be implemented in this coming fall semester. Because students choose their classes in March, towards the end of the spring semester, students made uninformed decisions on their class schedule under the assumption that classes would be held in person. As time goes on, we are realizing this may not be entirely possible and most universities in Florida will be making the decision of whether to move classes online in the following months. 

Local Opportunity 4

Play Life, Live Games column: Old technology holding PSVR back from greatness

Source: https://www.gainesville.com/entertainment/20200528/play-life-live-games-column-old-technology-holding-psvr-back-from-greatness

Summary: Avid PlayStation gamers are frustrated with Sony's virtual reality (VR) technology as they claim it is limiting the amount of control players have in games. Unlike Oculus, a top VR gaming company, PlayStation's hand controllers are much more limited, lacking analog sticks to help users move around their environment. In addition, there have been complaints that not enough VR games have been released by Sony, but this is expected to change the upcoming months.

Local Opportunity 5

Rebuilding America: Touchless options the new norm in grocery industry

Source: https://www.gainesville.com/news/20200528/rebuilding-america-touchless-options-new-norm-in-grocery-industry

Summary: The grocery industry is seeing rapid change across the country as new technologies and

procedures are being tested to reduce the amount of exposure people have with germs and other people.

These changes include online shopping and delivery as well as the use of automated technology in grocery stores. While these new ways are unorthodox and perhaps confusing to consumers today, these changes are expected to last long after the pandemic has ended and this will soon become familiar to Americans.

Assignment 3A

    I was exposed to entrepreneurship at a very young age. My father has been an entrepreneur for nearly three decades in the health and nutrition sector. When he was a child, his mother was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and arthritis around the same time. One of the biggest problems she had was her arthritis medicine would make her MS worse and vice versa. At this point, the family began to look into alternative methods to ease my grandmother's pain. They found that there were a lot of vitamins and nutritional supplements that made my grandmother feel better that did not have to be purchased at a pharmacy.

    After my father graduated from USF, he moved to Gainesville where he and my grandpa opened an all natural supermarket. A few years later, that company was sold and he later moved back to Tampa and started a new vitamin and supplement business with two friends he met in college. He has always been passionate about his work and his company and I think that i s a huge reason for his success.

    I enrolled in ENT3003 this summer because I have always admired the idea of creating or providing something that can help people. I know becoming an entrepreneur can be risky and there are a lot of steps that entrepreneurs need to take to get their business off the ground. I am looking forward to learning about the actual process of how to take an idea and turn it into a successful business.