Applied machine learning can be a distinct advantage for enterprise searching for innovative ways to tackle complex problems. This technology permits companies to analyze tremendous amounts of data and make forecasts based on examples and connections. With the right machine learning algorithms and instruments, businesses can settle data-driven decisions based on statistical examination and insights instead of intuition. So, it’s clear why many companies are turning to applied machine learning to tackle their most pressing business challenges.
How Enterprise Applied Machine Learning Can Help Solve Business Problems
An Overview
Machine learning is an advanced innovation that changes how businesses work. It involves using algorithms that enable computer systems to learn from data without being explicitly programmed automatically. With machine learning, businesses can predict customer behavior, optimize supply chain management and improve product offerings.
This technology could change how businesses work, remain in front of the opposition, and develop their main concern. By utilizing machine learning, businesses can pursue data-driven decisions that lead to better results. Nothing unexpected that more and more companies are integrating this technology into their activities to remain competitive in the present rapidly impacting world.
Foundational Concepts You Need to Know About Applied Machine Learning
Applied machine learning is rapidly acquiring strength as one of the most requested fields in innovation. Before diving into machine learning, it’s essential to have a strong understanding of the central ideas that support the field. These include statistical theory, linear algebra, calculus, and probability theory. Familiarizing yourself with these principles will provide the tools to develop and deploy machine learning models effectively.
Furthermore, it’s fundamental to deeply understand the algorithms used in machine learning, for example, support vector machines, random forests, and artificial neural organizations. Gaining expertise in these areas will allow you to effectively build cutting-edge applications utilizing machine learning to provide value to businesses and consumers. With a strong foundation in these ideas and procedures, you’ll be good to go to leave a career in applied machine learning.
Benefits of Applying Machine Learning in Enterprise
Technology has reformed the way organizations work, and one aspect that has recently acquired critical consideration is machine learning. This technology empowers machines to make expectations and choices based on data, reducing human mediation requirements. The benefits of applying machine learning in business include the following:
Improved decision-making accuracy.
Faster and more efficient processes.
The ability to examine a lot of information continuously.
It allows businesses to predict stock prices and customer behavior, and personalize marketing campaigns, among other things. By embracing machine learning, businesses can get ahead of their competitors and operate more efficiently, ultimately leading to greater success.
Challenges and Opportunities for Applied Machine Learning
Applied machine learning is an amazing field that is continually evolving. However, with every opportunity comes its arrangement of challenges.
One of the biggest hurdles for machine learning is ensuring the quality of inputted data. With clean and well-organized data, the accuracy of machine learning algorithms can improve.
Another challenge is the ever-present bias in machine learning models, which can lead to unequal outcomes and discrimination.
Despite these hurdles, there are vast opportunities for applied machine learning, including making sense of complex data sets and improving the accuracy and efficiency of processes.
Popular Tools and Frameworks Used for Applied Machine Learning
In the present digital age, applied machine learning is a rapidly developing field, and utilizing the right devices and systems couldn’t be more significant. Machine learning algorithms rely heavily on data, computation power, and specialized software. That’s why popular tools and frameworks like
TensorFlow, developed by Google, is a widely used open-source software library that excels in deep learning tasks.
PyTorch is another popular open-source framework that has a user-friendly interface and allows for seamless experimentation with data models.
Scikit-learn is a powerful library well-suited for machine-learning tasks like clustering and classification.
With such innovative tools and frameworks at our disposal, the possibilities of applied machine learning are boundless.
Strategies for Successfully Implementing Applied Machine Learning Projects
Applied machine learning is a hot field that is rapidly changing and can reform numerous businesses. However, successfully implementing machine learning projects can be challenging for many organizations. Fortunately, the right strategies can overcome common challenges and achieve success.
One important strategy is to start small and build iteratively. It means selecting a focused problem and building a minimum viable product (MVP), testing it, and incorporating feedback to improve the model.
Another key strategy is to ensure that your team has the right expertise and resources to execute the project. Also, It might mean hiring outside help or investing in employee training.
By following these strategies, organizations can successfully navigate the complexities of implementing applied machine learning projects and reap this technology’s many benefits.
Key Takeaways from Applying Machine Learning in Your Business
As businesses hope to improve and remain competitive in the rapidly changing digital landscape, machine learning has become an important device for acquiring insights and making data-driven decisions. Among the key takeaways from applying machine learning in your business are clearly understanding your data, using the right algorithms and techniques, and focusing on the business outcomes you hope to achieve.
Conclusion
In conclusion, applied machine learning offers tremendous potential to organizations and businesses of all sizes. Enterprise Applied Machine Learning projects require considering and implementing foundational concepts such as data preparation, modeling, evaluation, data visualization, automation, and storage. With suitable strategies, including documentation and auditing processes, successfully implementing applied machine learning technologies can help drive improved efficiency, effectiveness, accuracy, and scalability with minimal risk and cost.
Successfully implementing an applied machine learning solution project in your business environment requires keenly understanding your requirements while selecting the right tools. With its vibrant ecosystem of frameworks and tools available to aid rapid development initiatives – embracing the possibilities presented by applying machine learning within your brand domain may be just the solution you are searching for!
How Enterprise Applied Machine Learning Can Help Solve Business Problems; Photo by Pixabay.
Upsell opportunities, also known as upsell, is a sales tactics used by companies to sell a higher version of a product or service than a potential customer originally intended to buy. Upselling can increase revenue and allow customers to use a product or service with more features and functionality.
Here are the articles to explain, What are the upsell opportunities? How does it work? Basic Steps
Most businesses offer different tiers of a single product or service with features or functionality significantly higher than the standard version. Identifying a customer’s needs and launching a better version of a product or service is known as upselling, or identifying upselling opportunities.
For example, when a customer decides to buy a standard version of an office suite, but a salesperson thinks a premium version can better address their pain points, they will try to upsell the product. If a customer chooses the premium version instead of the standard version, it will provide them and the company with better value as the sale will generate more revenue.
While salespeople are responsible for identifying upsell opportunities in smaller companies, in larger businesses teams such as marketing or marketing operations are responsible for the same work.
Upsell opportunities exist for any business that offers a multi-level product or service sales strategy. These companies often use customer success software to learn more about customers, their satisfaction levels, how they use a product or service and determine if they need more from their current solutions.
Here are some examples of using upsell opportunities:
phone plan
software solution
hotel
streaming service
Computers and Mobile Devices
insurance plan
Basic Steps in Identifying Upsell Opportunities
Spotting upsell opportunities isn’t difficult. Sales and marketing teams encounter many situations every day. A few steps to easily identify upsell opportunities are as follows:
Journey-based: Monitoring customer journeys helps to understand their preferences, interests, behaviors, and what they hope to achieve with the product. Understanding these factors can help teams upsell solutions to customers.
Single View: Customers can interact with a product or service through multiple touchpoints. It can be difficult to keep track of all touchpoints daily. Tracking customer touchpoints is easier with a unified view of the customer.
Segmentation: Mining behavioral data to track customer information such as purchase history, app usage, product issues, etc. can help sales and marketing teams understand them better. In turn, this helps them better upsell solutions to customers.
How does upsell work?
Once a potential customer signs the dotted line and becomes a paying customer, they have access to the product or service. However, over time, they may require more functionality or features to be usable. Identifying this upsell opportunity is up to a salesperson (in smaller companies) or a dedicated team such as marketing or marketing operations (in larger companies), who can then show the customer what an extended version of the product looks like, how it works, and its benefits.
Application of Upsell Opportunities
Upsell opportunities should provide customers with a better value proposition. Companies often upsell with an attractive offer if the customer chooses it sooner rather than later. Waiting to buy an enhanced version of a product or service can be more expensive.
The following industries use upsells and upsell opportunities:
SaaS Solutions: The software-as-a-service (SaaS) industry uses upsell opportunities to sell higher versions of software plans. Most SaaS solutions have different tiers with higher plans that offer more user access, additional features, and even priority customer support.
Insurance: Insurance plans almost always have multiple options. Agencies identify and offer add-ons to ensure better coverage for their clients.
Streaming Services: Most streaming services have different plans. These plans offer additional benefits such as better resolution, allowing more users to watch simultaneously, and ad-free programming.
Computers and Mobile Devices: The basic versions of modern computers and mobile devices don’t offer a lot of extra value. Upgraded versions of these devices offer higher performance, greater storage capacity, or enhanced camera quality.
Hotels: Hotel managers aim to upsell guests upgraded rooms with more space and amenities for a better experience.
Advantages of Upselling
Identifying and implementing upsell opportunities has multiple advantages. Here are some of the most common advantages:
pay increment. Upselling helps increase revenue from existing customers rather than acquiring new ones.
Save the opportunity. Companies that offer multiple products or services can upsell them to customers who are already using a particular product. This gives them more opportunities to retain customers.
The best of both worlds. Upselling higher resolutions is good for salespeople as it helps them bring in more sales. On the other hand, customers can also benefit from upgrading to a better solution version.
Features of Upsell
Upselling involves a few features that help make it more effective. Here are some of them:
Promise: Upsells don’t stop when customers sign the dotted line. Companies need to make sure they deliver the promised value during an upsell.
Communication: Communication is the key to upselling. Salespeople must let customers understand the value and benefits that higher plans will bring.
Relationships: Building customer relationships and nurturing existing ones is a critical part of upselling efforts.
Trust: Customers need to trust a product or service before buying, especially when they are asked to spend more to upgrade an existing solution. Companies should allow free trials or money-back guarantees so customers can try out a product or service before purchasing. In most cases, customers are likely to convert when they build this trust.
Best Practices of Upsell opportunities
Upselling is a simple process that is easy to understand and implement. However, companies need to keep the following best practices in mind:
Relevance: A company should not launch a solution that does not provide value to customers. For example, if a customer wants to buy a motorcycle, it doesn’t make sense to sell them a car. Instead, dealers should analyze the variety of motorcycles available and upsell motorcycles with more features.
Value: Most customers won’t immediately agree to an upsell. Companies need to train them in the right way so that customers fully appreciate the value and benefits of upgrading their products.
Discounts: Companies can offer discounts to customers to upgrade their products or services. This provides more incentive for customers to purchase additional features and functionality at a lower price.
Needs: It’s important to research and understand a customer’s needs before upselling. For example, if a customer is currently using a standard version of a customer relationship management (CRM) solution, but requires more automation capabilities that are not available in the current plan, the responsible team needs to identify this and reach out proactively.
Relationship: Upselling is successful when mutual trust exists between the company and the customer. When salespeople come up with higher-value solutions, they can’t take a hard-line approach. Building relationships with customers is a great upsell technique. For example, if an existing SaaS customer requires a solution with higher functionality, the salesperson will be aware of this. Salespeople can then continue to slowly nurture customers and build strong relationships before upselling the next version of their product.
Difference between Upsell vs. Cross-sell
Upselling opportunities are often mistaken for cross-selling, which is a whole different concept. While upselling means that the company encourages existing customers to upgrade to the same product or service, cross-selling means that customers can buy an entirely different product or service at the time of purchase. For example, if a customer bought a smartphone, a salesperson might try to cross-sell cases or phone insurance.
This Essay article Discussion of Opportunities and Challenges of CPA Auditing. With the advent of the era of big data, the audit industry faces a new information environment. Against this backdrop, audit risks and approaches can change dramatically. Compared with traditional CPA auditing, CPA audit in the era of big data reflects more aspects that traditional CPA audit cannot or is difficult to do. Which improves the quality of audits, increases audit responsibilities, and makes the audit industry more effective. more opportunities.
Here are the articles to explain, On the Opportunities and Challenges of CPA Auditing in the Era of Big Data Essay!
Big data reduce audit risks, improves the quality of audit work and results, and realizes all-around management of CPA audits. However, the advantages and disadvantages of big data stand also two-sided. Although there are many conveniences, there are inevitably some problems. Such as the confidentiality of financial information, the difficulty of supervising and managing audit work, etc. You may also like to know about A case study of CPA audit failures in listed companies.
Whether it can seize the opportunity brought by the era of big data, face challenges, reduce the risk of independent audit failure, and improve audit quality has become a problem that the certified public accountant, Therefore, the auditing industry should consider how to adapt to the auditing model in the era of big data to better build auditing in the new environment. This article will focus on this issue and analyze the risk and quality of CPA audits.
Characteristics of CPA audit in the era of big data
Comparison of traditional CPA audit and big data CPA audit
Traditional audits exist mainly conducted manually and in a paper-based environment. Big data auditing uses more new technologies. What is the Comparison between Chinese and Western cultures? The similarities and differences between the two can analyze as follows.
The same
Both traditional CPA audits and big data CPA audits must use the ” CPA Law” and related standards as business standards and professional norms and use relevant laws, regulations, and accounting standards as the criteria for judging whether the audited unit’s fiscal revenue and expenditure are legal.
And whether it is a traditional or big data audit, the audit process must go through the three stages of preparation, implementation, and reporting, investigation, and understanding, signing of business agreements, evaluating internal control, confirming the level of importance, analyzing audit risks, formulating plans, and correcting The audited unit conduct internal control tests, performs substantive tests on statements, organizes audit evidence collected in the audit business, audits working papers, forms audit opinions, prepares reports and other basic audit procedures to express audit opinions.
Differences
In terms of audit evidence, traditional CPA audits mainly exist on paper. And audit evidence exists obtained by finding the account books and related materials of the audited unit. While big data CPA audits reduce complicated paper tasks. The audited unit collects audit evidence; in terms of audit procedures, traditional CPA audits mainly rely on traditional audit procedures, while big data CPA audits add more technical support to make it more convenient; in terms of audit methods.
The traditional CPA auditing method is a sampling audit, while a big data CPA audit can conduct an overall audit; in terms of audit time, a traditional CPA audit is a regular audit, while a big data CPA audit more uses a real-time audit; Opportunities and Challenges of CPA Auditing requires manual operation of the audited unit, while big data CPA audit requires the audited unit to adopt automatic control; from the perspective of staff, traditional CPA auditors need professional skills, while big data CPA audit requires auditors to master the ability to operate these information technologies; From the perspective of audit thinking, traditional CPA audit needs to analyze each part of the audit object first, then integrate and summarize it.
Big data CPA audit breaks the traditional audit thinking, masters the audit object, analyzes the data, and then makes an overall evaluation; audit In terms of risk, traditional CPA audits have many risks because they are mainly sampling audits. Big data CPA audits realize overall auditing, which reduces the risk of sampling audits on the one hand; in terms of audit quality, traditional CPA audits cannot guarantee audit data. The comprehensive and big data CPA audit enables auditors to use computer technology to avoid manual errors, make the audit objects more comprehensive and complete, and the audit quality becomes higher.
The basic characteristics of big data CPA audit
Because of the support of big data, the overall audit can realize. Even in the face of a large number of samples, the sampling method stands no longer used. Which reduces the audit risk and improves the accuracy of the audit results. Big data enables the audited unit to use external data, which solves the disadvantages of traditional auditing that it is difficult to obtain and use external data and can detect possible problems from many aspects, improving the accuracy of auditing. In the big data environment, auditors can directly use the original data to complete the corresponding audit work, reducing the possibility of fraud by the audited unit, and greatly saving time, manpower, and material resources.
Because the audit work under big data runs on the Internet, auditors do not need to go to the audited unit for investigation, nor do they need to work at a fixed time. Only one networked computer can work, making the audit work more flexible. Greatly improve audit efficiency. Big data auditing makes the classification of budget quota indicators more refined, which improves the comparability between indicator values. Big data auditing can reduce audit costs. For example, audit work papers need to store for about 10 years. Using big data information technology can save data on cloud platforms and reduce paper usage.
Auditors data auditing
Auditors can also use the cloud platform to work. Which stands not limited by time and space, reducing the corresponding management costs. Opportunities and Challenges of CPA Auditing. Big data auditing changes the content from financial auditing to comprehensive performance auditing. In the past, auditing mainly focused on the revenue and expenditure of the audited unit, which made the audit supervision only analyze the financial data, and could not analyze the business indicators of the audited unit in depth, resulting in auditing. The results cannot fully reflect the performance status of the audited unit. While the big data audit makes the data of the analysis of business information. So that the comprehensive performance audit can realize.
Opportunities and challenges faced by CPA auditing in the era of big data
Opportunities for CPA auditing in the era of big data
Improve audit quality
The main reason why traditional audits use sampling audits is that enterprises need to audit a lot of data. And information and the collection of data require a long process and time. These limits work efficiency to a large extent, so only sampling audits can use, big data Auditing realizes a comprehensive audit. Opportunities and Challenges of CPA Auditing. Which greatly improves audit quality. Due to the use of big data, the audit evidence has become more, more accurate, and more comprehensive, and all data under the big data audit is open and transparent, so there is no interference from other factors. It is for these reasons that audit quality will greatly improve.
Audit risk reduction
Big data technology has a powerful ability to process information. Which greatly reduces the pressure of audit work, and through big data technology. A more accurate answer can obtain, making the audit work more comprehensive, thereby reducing audit risks. The application of big data will also reduce fraud because the application of technology makes audit data more transparent, and all information can make public. audit risk.
Audit cost reduction
Under big data technology, the working time and space of auditors have become flexible. And the upload and entry of some materials can save to the Internet system or cloud data platform. Which can save space and can also stand permanently stored. At the same time, it can directly search on the Internet, which improves work efficiency. Saves time and space, and reduces audit costs to a large extent.
Challenges faced by CPA auditing in the era of big data
Relevant auditors need to have data analysis capabilities
From traditional auditing to big data auditing, auditing methods have changed. It is far from enough to rely on previous skills. When using big data auditing, you must be sensitive to data and have the ability to analyze data. , and to be proficient in using relevant software to analyze and process data, and then draw true and reliable conclusions. In addition to the above abilities, the audit work also requires knowledge of the law, economy, management, and other knowledge and the ability of interpersonal communication, the use of information system technology, the ability to evaluate internal control, etc.
The audit work is a comprehensive and complex talent with comprehensive knowledge. At this stage, the audit department Most of them are audit staff, lacking professional technical analysts, and some older staff may be slow to accept new technologies. This seriously affects the development of audit work in the big data environment. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the professional and technical capabilities of auditors and to cultivate auditors’ working ability to understand big data technology and its application in audit work.
Audit application technology is backward
Big data auditing is different from traditional auditing. It is a brand-new auditing method. Big data auditing no longer relies on the data collected, sorted, and analyzed manually in the past. These tasks will realize by computers. However, the computer does not directly provide accurate data to the audit staff but provides traditional display methods such as picture information and video, which are difficult to accurately convey the information, so the auditor needs to process the data to make it visualized again. However, when applying information technology, the low level reduces the ability to accurately analyze data.
Data privacy issues
The big data audit results stand uploaded through the network. So it is difficult to ensure the confidentiality of the data. Due to the high commercial value of the activities involved in the audit work. Some auditors may disclose data content that violates professional ethics for profit. However, in the current cloud computing model, it is very difficult to supervise and manage the audit work well. Since the audit results stand managed by a third party. The audit-related personnel can easily evade their responsibilities. Another aspect is the risk of the network system. Which requires enterprises to improve the defense capabilities of their audit systems and the ability to deal with various network risks. Otherwise, a loophole in the system will leak information and cause irreparable losses.
Development strategy of CPA audit in the era of big data
Strengthen the training of relevant professionals
The application of big data auditing requires a large number of talents with professional skills, and now most auditors do not have this ability, so it is necessary to provide the professional ability and skill training for auditors and to change the auditors’ ideology and thinking, In addition to training staff who can use big data auditing, it is also necessary to train auditors in the audit team to have the skills to analyze and evaluate audit big data, to better ensure the accuracy and reliability of big data. In the training process, it is necessary to teach students by their aptitude. So that each person participating in the audit personalizes.
Build your data platform
When using the big data platform, it is easy to block when collecting data and information. When the audited unit requires an audit report with no reservations. The requirements of the audited unit and the requirements of the auditing standards will contradict each other. At this time, if a business When the firm has its database and its data platform. The firm can enter customer data and then research it. Using these data can better understand the past and present of the enterprise, predict and analyze the future development of the enterprise, and then can expand the scope of the accounting firm’s business so that the accounting firm can carry out business such as forecasting, tax representation, consulting and corporate strategy, and can expand its business scope and bring more benefits to it.
Improve safety awareness and strengthen risk prevention
Because the computer audit results stand uploaded through the network. It is difficult to ensure that the data is completely confidential. First, the big data cloud platform must be encrypted to control user access and control big data to protect sensitive private information. Secondly, to implement protection in the process of big data collection and analysis, different managers need to be used in the implementation process. Finally, it is necessary to establish a security platform of a heterogeneous data center that is detected by meshed clients, to detect anomalies in time, so that data can be protected from the most basic places.
Improve the audit organization model
The traditional audit organization model adopts a decentralized method, most of which is group analysis. The staff work in small groups, and then the data analysis through groups. The big data audit model is a unified overall data body. It is based on data analysis and the audit work carried out with data as the core. It can effectively integrate resources and become more scientific and accurate.
Standardize auditing standards and formulate policies and regulations
Under today’s big data auditing model, my country’s auditing system has not changed because of this. The current auditing system is only aimed at traditional auditing procedures, while big data auditing procedures have changed. Therefore, the state should support and encourage big data. At the same time as data development, relevant policies are issued and implemented to truly and effectively promote the development of the big data industry, so that auditors can have more standardized guidance and relevant reminders when using big data auditing in various audit business links. to reduce audit risk.
Opportunities and Challenges of CPA Auditing in the Era of Big Data Essay; Photo by Amy Hirschi on Unsplash.
Identifying Opportunities for Observing Trends; The First approach to identifying opportunities is to observe trends and study how they create opportunities for entrepreneurs to pursue. Also learn, What is the Difference between Leadership and Entrepreneurship? This article explains to the question How to Explain Observing Trends in Entrepreneurship? The most important trends to follow are economic trends, social trends, technological advances, and political action and regulatory changes. As an entrepreneur or potential entrepreneur, it’s important to remain aware of changes in these areas
Learn and understand, Explaining are Observing Trends in Entrepreneurship.
This sentiment affirms by Michael Yang, the founder of Become.com, a comparison shopping site, who believes that keen observation skills and a willingness to stay on top of changing environmental trends are key attributes of successful entrepreneurs: One of the most important attributes of a good entrepreneur is having a keen observation ability. Seeing what’s needed in people’s everyday lives and coming up with innovative new ideas and services that meet those needs . . . I always believe the entrepreneurs that anticipate trends and maintain observations of what’s needed . . . to solve those needs will have a higher chance of succeeding in the marketplace.
When looking at environmental trends to discern new business ideas, there are two caveats to keep in mind. First, it’s important to distinguish between trends and fads. New businesses typically do not have the resources to ramp up fast enough to take advantage of a fad. Second, even though we discuss each trend individually, they are interconnecting and should consider simultaneously when brainstorming new business ideas.
For example, one reason that smartphones are so popular is because they benefit from several trends converging at the same time, including an increasingly mobile population (social trend), the continued miniaturization of electronics (technological trend), and their ability to help users better manage their money via online banking and comparison shopping (economic trend). If any of these trends weren’t present, smartphones wouldn’t be as successful as they are and wouldn’t hold as much continuing promise to be even more successful as is the case.
A summary of the relationship between the environmental factors just mentioned and identifying opportunity gaps. Next, let’s look at how entrepreneurs can study each of these factors to help them spot business, product, and service opportunity gaps. Read more, What are the Participation and Organizational Climate?
Economic Forces:
Understanding economic trends help determine areas that are ripe for new business ideas as well as areas to avoid. When the economy is strong, people have more money to spend and are willing to buy discretionary products and services that enhance their lives. In contrast, when the economy is weak, not only do people have less money to spend, they are typically more reluctant to spend the money they have, fearing the economy may become even worse and that in turn, they might lose their jobs because of a weakening economy.
Paradoxically, a weak economy provides business opportunities for start-ups that help consumers save money. Examples include GasBuddy and GasPriceWatch.com, two companies started to help consumers save money on gasoline. A similar example is e.l.f., a discount retailer of women’s cosmetics. The company (which stands for Eyes Lips Face) sells cosmetics products for as little as $1.00.
First:
A poor or weak economy also provides opportunities for firms to sell upscale and everyday items at a “discount.” For example, daily deal sites like Groupon and LivingSocial have experienced rapid growth by providing consumers’ access to local providers of massages, trips to museums, high-end restaurants, and similar products or services at deep discounts. A similar example is Gilt Groupe, which sells luxury goods at a discount on time-limited sales. Brick-and-mortar retailers are affected by the search for discounts too.
For example, in 2009, Neiman Marcus reported a 14.8 percent drop in sales while Family Dollar experienced a 25 percent increase in revenues. The same mindset is contributing to people wanting the most value for their money, across the spectrum. For example, the recession has caused an upswing in the number of people frequenting local farmers markets, where people can buy locally grown produce, meats, and other food products that are fresher and often cheaper than similar products at the grocery store.
Second:
It’s also important to evaluate how economic forces affect people’s behaviors beyond looking for discounts and the most value for their money. For example, when the economy is weak, more people go back to school; largely as a result of poor employment prospects. This trend provides opportunities not only for traditional and online colleges and universities but for businesses that develop products to assist them.
An example is BenchPrep, the student-initiated business profiled in the opening feature. BenchPrep, which sells Apple iPhone and Android apps that help people prepare for college admission tests, is benefiting from an increase in college enrollments. Similarly, when the economy is poor, more people start businesses. Web-based businesses like Etsy, which provides a platform for people to sell handmade items; thrive when an increasing number of people are looking to open full-time or part-time businesses.
Third:
An understanding of economic trends can also help identify areas to avoid. For example, this is not a good time to start a company that relies on fossil fuels; such as airlines or trucking or perhaps even local transportation-related businesses such as a taxicab company, because of high fuel prices. Certain product categories suffer as a result of economic circumstances. This is not a good time to open a store or franchise that sells premium-priced food products like cookies or ice cream.
Social Forces:
An understanding of the impact of social forces on trends and how they affect the new product, service, and business ideas is a fundamental piece of the opportunity recognition puzzle. Often, the reason that a product or service exists has more to do with satisfying a social need than the more transparent need the product fills. The proliferation of fast-food restaurants, for example, isn’t primarily because of people’s love for fast food but rather because people are busy and often don’t have time to cook their meals.
First Things:
Similarly, social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter aren’t popular because they can use to post information and photos on a Web site. They’re popular because they allow people to connect and communicate with each other, which is a natural human tendency. Changes in social trends alter how people and businesses behave and how they set their priorities. These changes affect how products and services are built and sold. Here is a sample of the social trends that are currently affecting how individuals behave and set their priorities:
Aging of baby boomers,
The increasing diversity of the workforce,
Increasing interest in social networks such as Facebook and Twitter,
The proliferation of mobile phones and mobile phone apps,
An increasing focus on health and wellness,
Emphasis on clean forms of energy including the wind, solar, biofuels, and others,
Increasing the number of people going back to school and/or retraining for new jobs, and
Increasing interest in healthy foods and “green” products.
Each of these trends is providing the impetus for new business ideas. An increasing emphasis on alternative forms of energy is spawning business ideas ranging from solar power to biofuels.
Second Things:
The aging of the baby boomers is creating business opportunities from vision care to tech assistance to senior dating sites. An example is Glaukos, a company that’s developing new approaches for treating glaucoma, which is an age-related eye disorder. There are now 76 million baby boomers (people born between 1946 and 1964) in the United States. Many baby boomers will develop glaucoma and similar age-related ailments. The fact that roughly 10,000 baby boomers in the United States are now retiring daily also creates entrepreneurial opportunities related to social trends associated with this population of senior citizens.
Third Things:
The proliferation of mobile phones and mobile phone apps is a social trend that’s opening business opportunities for entrepreneurs across the globe. For example, both Runkeeper, the focus of Case 1.1, and ScriptPad, the focus of Case 2.1, are mobile phone apps. In the past 10 years, the worldwide penetration of mobile phones has grown from 1 billion to 4 billion active users. One company, PharmaSecure, the focus of the “You Be the VC 2.1” feature, is leveraging this trend to save lives in developing countries. It’s estimated that 10 percent of medications sold worldwide are counterfeit. In India alone, 1 million people a year die from ingesting counterfeit drugs.
Forth Things:
PharmaSecure provides drug companies the ability to place a nine-digit alphanumeric code directly on the blister pack, medicine bottle or vial, or on the product’s label, along with a phone number. Consumers can verify the code and by extension make sure the drug they have purchased isn’t counterfeit by texting it to the accompanying phone number. In India, PharmaSecure’s initial market, 55 percent of the population has a mobile phone, and it’s the fastest-growing market for mobile phones in the world. If it weren’t for the proliferation of mobile phones in India and elsewhere, PharmaSecure’s business wouldn’t be possible.
Fifth Things:
The booming interest in social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter is a highly visible social trend. Nearly half of all Americans are now members of at least one social network; double from just two years ago. Social networks not only provide people with new ways to communicate and interact with each other, but they act as platforms for other businesses to build on. Zynga, for example, the maker of popular online games like FarmVille and Scramble; became popular by making browser-based games that worked as application widgets on Facebook and MySpace. Similarly, entrepreneurs have launched businesses to start social networks that cater to specific niches. An example is PatientsLikeMe, the subject of Case 1.2, which is a social networking site for people with serious diseases.
Technological Advances:
Advances in technology frequently dovetail with economic and social changes to create opportunities. For example, there are many overlaps between an increased focus on health and wellness and technology. Airstrip Technologies, a recent start-up, enables doctors to monitor critical patient information remotely on a smartphone or computer. The company’s founding was motivated by a desire on the part of doctors to stay in closer contact with their critical care patients while away from the hospital and while those patients are receiving treatment in locations outside a hospital.
Tech first:
Advances in wireless technologies made the system possible. In most cases, the technology isn’t the key to recognizing business opportunities. Instead, the key is to recognize how technologies can use and harness to help satisfy basic or changing needs. It’s always been difficult for doctors to leave the bedsides of critically ill patients, for example. Now, as a result of the advent of smartphones and wireless networks; a company like Airstrip Technologies can develop products to help doctors remotely monitor their patients’ conditions.
Technological advances also provide opportunities to help people perform everyday tasks in better or more convenient ways. For example, OpenTable.com is a Web site that allows users to make restaurant reservations online and now covers most of the United States. If you’re planning a trip to San Diego, for example, you can access OpenTable.com, select the area of the city you’ll be visiting, and view descriptions, reviews, customer ratings, and in most cases the menus of the restaurants in the area.
You can then make a reservation at the restaurant and print a map and the directions to it. The basic tasks that OpenTable.com helps people perform have always been done looking for a restaurant, comparing prices and menus, soliciting advice from people who are familiar with competing restaurants and getting directions. What OpenTable.com does is help people perform these tasks more conveniently and expediently.
Teah second:
Another aspect of technological advances is that once a technology is created, products often emerge to advance it. For example, the creation of the Apple iPod, iPhone, iPad, and similar devices have in turned spawned entire industries that produce compatible devices. An example is H2OAudio, a company that was started by four former San Diego State University students; which makes waterproof housings for the Apple iPhone and iPod. The waterproof housings permit iPhone and iPod users to listen to their devices; while swimming, surfing, snowboarding, or engaging in any activity where the device is likely to get wet.
A similar industry is the one dealing with smartphone apps. As of May 2011, there were over 381,000 third-party apps available in Apple’s App Store and over 294,000 in the Android Market (Google’s app store).13 The app market is large and growing, all because of the advent of wireless networks and smart devices like the iPhone and iPad. To provide perspective on how big the app market is, at 10:26 A.M. GMT on Saturday, January 22, 2011, the 10 billionth app was downloaded from the Apple App Store.
Political Action and Regulatory Changes:
Political and regulatory changes also provide the basis for opportunities. For example, new laws create opportunities for entrepreneurs to start firms to help companies, individuals, and governmental agencies comply with these laws. For example, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002; which is based on the notion of outcome-based education requires states to develop criterion-based assessments in basic skills to periodically give to all students in certain grades. Shortly after the act was passed, Kim and Jay Kleeman, two high school teachers, started Shakespeare Squared; a company that produces materials to help schools comply with the act.
Extra information:
On some occasions, changes in government regulations motivate business owners to start firms that differentiate themselves by “exceeding” the regulations. For example, several years ago, the Federal Trade Commission changed the regulation about; how far apart the wood or metal bars in an infant crib can be. If the bars are too far apart; a baby can get an arm or a leg caught between the bars, causing an injury.
An obvious business idea that might spawn by this type of change is to produce a crib; that advertises and position as “exceeding” the new standard for the width between bars and is “extra safe” for babies and young children. The change in regulation brings attention to the issue and provides ideal timing for; a new company to reassure parents by providing a product that not only meets but exceeds the new regulation.
Business change:
Some businesses and industries are so dependent on favorable government regulations that their literal survival threatens if a regulation change. An example of a business that fits this profile is Almost Family, a company that provides home health nursing services. Almost Family receives the majority of its income via fixed payments from Medicare based on the level of care that it provides its clients. As a result, the company’s profitability is highly sensitive to any changes in Medicare reimbursement policies.
Political change:
The political change also engenders new business and product opportunities. For example, global political instability and the threat of terrorism have resulted in many firms becoming more security conscious. These companies need new products and services to protect their physical assets and intellectual property; as well as to protect their customers and employees. The backup data storage industry; for example, is expanding because of this new trend in the tendency to feel the need for data to be more protected than in the past. An example of a start-up in this area is Box.net; which was funded by Mark Cuban, the owner of the Dallas Mavericks. Box.net allows its customers to store data “offsite” on Box.net servers, and access it via an Internet connection.
How to Explain Observing Trends in Entrepreneurship? Also, the Image from the Internet.
What is Strategic Management? Strategic management involves the formulation and implementation of the major goals and initiatives taken by a company’s top management on behalf of owners, based on consideration of resources and an assessment of the internal and external environments in which the organization competes. Strategic management can also define as a bundle of decisions and acts which a manager undertakes and which decides the result of the firm’s performance.
Here explains read and learn; What is Strategic Management? Meaning and Definition.
Strategic management provides overall direction to the enterprise and involves specifying the organization’s objectives, developing policies and plans designed to achieve these objectives, and then allocating resources to implement the plans. Academics and practicing managers have developed numerous models and frameworks to assist in strategic decision making in the context of complex environments and competitive dynamics. Strategic management is not static; the models often include a feedback loop to monitor execution and inform the next round of planning.
Michael Porter identifies three principles underlying strategy: creating a “unique and valuable market position”, making trade-offs by choosing “what not to do”, and creating “fit” by aligning company activities with one another to support the chosen strategy. Dr. Vladimir Kvint defines strategy as “a system of finding, formulating, and developing a doctrine that will ensure long-term success if followed faithfully.”
The corporate strategy involves answering a key question from a portfolio perspective: “What business should we be in?” Business strategy involves answering the question: “How shall we compete in this business?” In management theory and practice, a further distinction is often made between strategic management and operational management. Operational management is concerned primarily with improving efficiency and controlling costs within the boundaries set by the organization’s strategy.
Definition of Strategic Management:
Strategic management involves the formulation and implementation of the major goals and initiatives taken by a company’s top management on behalf of owners, based on consideration of resources and an assessment of the internal and external environments in which the organization competes.
The strategy is defined as;
“The determination of the basic long-term goals of an enterprise, and the adoption of courses of action and the allocation of resources necessary for carrying out these goals.”
Strategies are established to set direction, focus effort, define or clarify the organization, and provide consistency or guidance in response to the environment. As well as, Strategic management involves the related concepts of strategic planning and strategic thinking. It is analytical and refers to formalized procedures to produce the data and analyses used as inputs for strategic thinking; which synthesizes the data resulting in the strategy. Strategic planning may also refer to control mechanisms used to implement the strategy once it determines.
In other words, strategic planning happens around strategic thinking or strategy making activity. Strategic management often describes as involving two major processes: formulation and implementation of a strategy. While described sequentially below, in practice the two processes are iterative and each provides input for the other. Also, Strategic Management is all about identification and description of the strategies; that managers can carry to achieve better performance and a competitive advantage for their organization. An organization is said to have a competitive advantage if its profitability is higher than the average profitability of all companies in its industry.
Explanation;
The manager must have a thorough knowledge and analysis of the general and competitive organizational environment to make the right decisions. They should conduct a SWOT Analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats), i.e., they should make the best possible utilization of strengths, minimize the organizational weaknesses, make use of arising opportunities from the business environment and shouldn’t ignore the threats.
Strategic management is nothing but planning for both predictable as well as unfeasible contingencies. It applies to both small as well as large organizations as even the smallest organization faces competition; and, by formulating and implementing appropriate strategies; they can attain sustainable competitive advantage.
It is a way in which strategists set the objectives and proceed about attaining them. It deals with making and implementing decisions about the future direction of an organization. They help us to identify the direction in which an organization is moving.
Strategic management is a continuous process that evaluates and controls the business and the industries in which an organization involve; evaluates its competitors and sets goals and strategies to meet all existing and potential competitors; and then reevaluates strategies regularly to determine how it has been implemented and whether it was successful or does it needs replacement.
What is Strategic Management? Meaning and Definition.
More things;
Strategic Management gives a broader perspective to the employees of an organization; and, they can better understand how their job fits into the entire organizational plan; how it co-relate to other organizational members. It is nothing but the art of managing employees in a manner that maximizes the ability to achieve business objectives. The employees become more trustworthy, more committed and satisfied; as they can co-relate themselves very well with each organizational task.
They can understand the reaction of environmental changes in the organization; and, the probable response of the organization with the help of strategic management. Thus the employees can judge the impact of such changes on their job and can effectively face the changes. Also, the managers and employees must appropriately do appropriate things. They need to be both effective as well as efficient.
Several years ago at the National Spelling Bee, one of the young ladies really excelled among the others in the competition. With a bright smile, she confidently spelled each word without hesitation. After she had won the contest, she was being interviewed by the television network and was asked how she became just an outstanding speller. She looked directly into the camera and stated, “My success is due to two things, God and Practice!”
I spent the first sixteen and one-half years of my working life as an educator. Two particular coaches really stand out in my mind. One fellow would practice his football team hour upon hour, day upon day, week upon week. He would practice his team on weekends and holidays. His practice time ran for hours with disgruntled parents waiting in the parking lot to pick up their kids. He was known far and near as being a tough and demanding coach, a reputation which he treasured. His players seemed to always suffer from burnout and bad attitudes. This coach was known throughout the state as being a tough coach. The problem was he could never produce a championship team. In fact, he often struggled just to have a winning season! Then there was coach number two.
Coach number two had a whole different philosophy. His practice times were short but compact. The attitudes among his players were great. Every drill had a purpose. His practice time was filled with fun things that developed skills and motivated his athletes. The parents of his athletes loved him; the school board loved him; the Booster Club loved him; and his players loved him. He was always in demand as a public speaker at civic clubs and coaching clinics. Guess what? He also always produced the best teams, winning seasons, and led the conference in athletic scholarships for his players.
What was the difference in these two coaches? Coach number two had learned the secret of success. Contrary to Ben Franklin or whoever gets credit for the old saying… practice does not make perfect. Only “good” practice makes perfect! If a person does the same thing over and ever and over, but does it the wrong way, it is still wrong. That person is wasting his time, spinning his wheels and reinforcing the negative. A person has to determine the things that work and concentrate on strengthening and improving the little things that will enhance their success ratio. Doing the same thing over and over will produce the same results. If something is not working, then evaluate it (Remember the principals of management?), and make adjustments so that the results will be different. In the world in which we live, the winners have learned to do this whether it is in one’s personal life, business life, hobbies or in coaching!
A person can find true peace and self-actualization through accomplishment. On the other hand, continuous failure leads to a very sad and unfulfilling life. There are so many people who continue to live their lives in a rut that leads to nowhere. They work in jobs that they do not like, with people that they cannot tolerate and in positions that are unrewarding. This is so sad since life is full of opportunity, excitement and adventure. Why would anyone stay in a situation in which they merely exist instead of flourish? Life has too much to offer for one to waste away his precious years and trade each day of his life for a paycheck! That is why entrepreneurs are different from other people. There is something in their inner being that will not allow them to merely survive.
Zig Ziglar has inspired thousands upon thousands with his books and public appearances. I had the opportunity to meet Mr. Ziglar several years ago and found him to be even more dynamic in person as he is in his books and on his tapes. Zig believes, as I do, that a good attitude is the most important personal asset that a person possesses. One’s outlook on life determines how far he will go. One’s attitude determines how one reacts to the inevitable failures that even the most successful people have to overcome. As Zig states, “It’s not what happens to you that is important, but rather how you react to what happens to you.” How true this statement is! When things don’t go right, do you fall apart? Do you lash out and blame others? Do you wallow in your failure or do you pick yourself up, dust yourself off and continue to plunge forward? We have all heard the stories of Thomas Edison and the number of times that he suffered defeat and setbacks in his endeavor to invent the light bulb and some of his other inventions. We have all heard the stories of Col. Harland Sanders and how he only found success with his Kentucky Fried Chicken idea after he retired from what he really did for a living. We have heard the story of Garth Brooks who was rejected time and time again by the major record labels in Nashville before a chance appearance at the Bluebird Café turned his life around. Garth went on to be the biggest single country act in history! These type stories go on and on. Zig states that, “One’s attitude, not his aptitude, will determine his altitude.” How true this statement is for the aspiring entrepreneur?
Over the years, I have discovered that entrepreneurs have a different outlook on life. There is the story about the young clerk in the department store who was approached by a customer who asked him if he was the manager. The young man looked up at the customer and quickly replied, “No sir! Not yet!” What a great answer! Just imagine if the young man had hanged his head and replied, “Oh no sir. Not me. I’m just a clerk.” What a different image that would have projected. There is another story about the two men who were both working side by side digging a ditch that was to be the foundation for a huge new palace. A passerby stopped and asked the first man what he was doing. Belligerently, he replied, “Can’t you see that I’m digging a ditch?” The passerby continued over to the second man and stated, “Well, I see that you are digging a ditch also.” “No sir”, replied the second man. “I’m building a palace!” Attitude! Attitude! Attitude!
Once, several years ago, I was watching one of the local television stations in my home town of Huntsville, Alabama. The local news had had a contest among the regional junior high school students and had selected one of the students to co-host the weather forecast. The young man that won the contest gave his weather report along with the station’s meteorologist. After the report, the meteorologist conducted a quick interview with the young man. He asked him about his education and future ambitions. The meteorologist concluded his interview by asking him if one day he wanted to be the weatherman at the station. The young man paused, and with a perplexed look on his face replied, “No sir! One day I want to own this station!” I could not help but get a lump in my throat when I heard his answer. That is the attitude that this country desperately needs! Why work at the station when you can own the station? That is the mindset of the entrepreneur.
Identifying and Recognizing Opportunities; To be successful entrepreneurs, we need to be continually innovating and looking for opportunities to grow our startups. When you can recognize opportunity, you know how to identify promising changes unfolding around you, and you act to take advantage of them. But how do you find new opportunities to take your startup to new markets and growth levels? Essentially, entrepreneurs recognize an opportunity and turn it into a successful business.
Here are explain; How to do Identifying and Recognizing Opportunities for a Successful Business?
An opportunity is a favorable set of circumstances that creates a need for a new product, service, or business. Most entrepreneurial ventures start in one of two ways. Also, Some ventures externally stimulate. In this instance, an entrepreneur decides to launch a firm, searches for and recognizes an opportunity, and then starts a business, as Jeff Bezos did when he created Amazon.com. In 1994, Bezos quit his lucrative job at a New York City investment firm and headed for Seattle with a plan to find an attractive opportunity and launch an e-commerce company.
Other firms are internally stimulated, like Bench Prep. An entrepreneur recognizes a problem or an opportunity gap and creates a business to fill it. Regardless of which of these two ways an entrepreneur starts a new business, opportunities are tough to spot.
Identifying a product, service, or business opportunity that isn’t merely a different version of something already available is difficult. A common mistake entrepreneurs make in the opportunity recognition process is picking a currently available product or service that they like or are passionate about and then trying to build a business around a slightly better version of it. Although this approach seems sensible, such is usually not the case.
The key to opportunity recognition is to identify a product or service that people need and are willing to buy, not one that an entrepreneur wants to make and sell.
What is An Opportunity?
Opportunity Defined; An opportunity is a favorable set of circumstances that creates the need for a new product, service, or business idea.
Difference between an opportunity and an idea; An idea, as we defined it, is “Something imagined or pictured in the mind”. Also, The difference is that an idea may or may not represent an opportunity.
Most entrepreneurial firms start in one of two ways; Some firms internally stimulate. An entrepreneur decides to start a firm, searches for and recognizes an opportunity, then starts a business. Other firms externally stimulate. Also, An entrepreneur recognizes a problem or an opportunity gap and creates a business to fill it.
An opportunity has four essential qualities:
It is;
1) attractive,
2) durable,
3) timely, and
4) anchored in a product, service, or business that creates or adds value for its buyer or end-user.
For an entrepreneur to capitalize on an opportunity, its window of opportunity must be open. Also, The term window of opportunity is a metaphor describing the period in which a firm can realistically enter a new market. You may understand identifying and recognizing opportunities, once the market for a new product establishes, its window of opportunity opens. As the market grows, firms enter and try to establish a profitable position. At some point, the market matures, and the window of opportunity closes.
This is the case with Internet search engines. Yahoo!, the first search engine, appeared in 1995, and the market grew quickly, with the addition of Lycos, Excite, AltaVista, and others. Google entered the market in 1998, sporting advanced search technology. Since then, the search engine market has matured, and the window of opportunity is less prominent. Today, it would be very difficult for a new start-up search engine firm to be successful unless it offered compelling advantages over already established competitors or targeted a niche market in an exemplary manner.
Bing, Microsoft’s search engine, is enjoying success with approximately 27 percent market share (compared to 68 percent for Google), but only after Microsoft has exerted an enormous amount of effort in head-to-head competition with Google.
It is important to understand that there is a difference between an opportunity and an idea. An idea is a thought, an impression, or a notion. Also, An idea may or may not meet the criteria of an opportunity. This is a critical point because many entrepreneurial ventures fail not because the entrepreneurs that launched them didn’t work hard, but rather because there was no real opportunity, to begin with. Before getting excited about a business idea, it is crucial to understand whether the idea fills a need and meets the criteria for an opportunity.
Also, Now let’s look at the three approaches entrepreneurs can use to identify an opportunity. Once you understand the importance of each approach, you’ll be much more likely to look for opportunities and ideas that fit each profile.
Learn here; If you need casinobonus2 , then the team of professionals from casinobonus2 is here to help you.
