my_helene_verdier

My Business proposal : The Car of Liberty
To see more about my business proposal have a look at : -My little power point presentation : @http://www.slideshare.net/Helene02111/the-car-of-liberty-2911269 -My blogpage : @http://thecarofliberty.over-blog.com/

__**Competencies for my business**__

__Technical competencies:__

- ELECTRIC CAR KNOWLEDGE My business proposal will require knowledge regarding the functioning and the maintenance of electric cars and in particular about the brand new Citröen model : the 100 % electric C-zero. - ICT MANAGEMENT "Knowledge of part or all of ICT Management concepts, methods, systems and tools." However, more than that I will need a person that will be able to manage the creation of an interactive website, a facebook, and a twitter interface to start. I also expect him/her to be able to innovate and to find trendy and innovative way of communication. He/ she must also be able to use new mobile phone technologies, GPS technology. - LOCAL LAWS The most important is that within our team of workers, we have someone who has the knowledge about the law surrounding the car renting. Car rentaing is a very strict area regarding the law because someone can have an accident with one of our cars and we need to be perfectly covered by an insurance, for instance. - MARKETING "Knowledge of part or all marketing concepts, methods, systems and tools, including branding, positioning, segmenting, value network, pricing and/or advertising". Because it is a new business, we really need strong competencies and knowledge in marketing to promote our unknown (but soon famous) company. Once again, more than just be able to deal with the existing tools of communication we need to be innovative and find new way of promoting our business.

__Beahvioural competencies :__

- COST CONSCIOUSNESS "Ability to optimize benefits versus costs" This competencies can appear to be the most obvious one. But still, I want to list it here as an important behavioural competency because it is not something that everybody has. I believe this competency to be really important in order to have an healthy business. Without profits your business will not be able to be sustainable. - INTER-PERSONAL RELATIONS "Ability to interact face-to-face easily with others and to make them feel comfortable regardless respective status or situations." This one is also really important because we are a service business. We often interact with our clients and we need to be able to listen and understand their requests as well as fulfill them in the best way we can. However, regarding the Car of Liberty, the relationship will not be face-to-face but it will be mainly indirect relationships with customers. This element do not decrease the importance of good relationships with our customers (relationship via the hotline for example). - CREATIVITY "Ability to use creative thinking to produce improvements or innovations, or to identify and solve unusual problems." As our world is changing so fast, and the competitive pressures are so intense, we need to be proactive (rather than reactive). We need to imagine the future needs and adapt our business in a right innovative way. We need to always go further and ask ourself what will be tomorrow's trends. The objective is to be the "first mover" and gain advantages over our competitors from it.

=**My researches on Entrepreneurship**=


 * __First of all, here are the results of the online test "What entrepreneur personality are you ?"__**



Comments:

My point of view about the test: This selftest is really easy to realise. Everyone can do it online on the web site www.palgrave.com The result give you an idea of what entrepreneur personality you are regarding your answers to the questions. It could be an useful tool. However, it is important to go beyond the simple analytic results. The results try to put your personality into pre-defined boxes and sometimes it goes wrong. It is what happened with my own results.

My point of view about my own results: I disagree with my result of the section 3 : //Creative tendency//. It says that I am innovative, imaginative, etc. I really do not believe that I am that kind of imaginative person. I feel like the opposite way : I feel like I am empty of new and innovative ideas. Regarding the section 5 : //Drive and determination//, my results are below the average. I do disagree with this result. I really believe that my ambition, my determination to take opportunities are my main qualitites. My classmates kind of agree with the fact that I am quite ambitious and determined. "Maybe too much sometimes" said some of them. And I agree with that opinion : I am a bit too stubborn sometimes.


 * __Talent Management__**:

A good entrepreneur is someone who see the opportunities while others only see the risks. A successful entrepreneur is someone who dare do things. Another important quality to become a good entrepreneur is to be able to create a strong team that will help you and support you at any moment. A successful entrepreneur is a very good leader and I think I am not. But I do believe that some leaders can be revealed in certain contexts and not in others. I may find mine some days, I may find an environment that will trigger my capacity to inspire and lead people.

Then, I think what we saw above as my main qualities (ambition, determination) are very relevant qualities to become a successful entrepreneur.


 * __Relevant Websites for entrepreneurs:__**

www.springwise.com Springwise and its network of 8 000 spotters scan the globe for smart new business ideas, delivering instant inspiration to entrepreneurial minds.

www.coolbusinessideas.com Based in Singapore, CoolBusinessIdeas.com is dedicated to the gathering of brand new promising business ideas and opportunities from around the world and informing our newsletter subscribers of emerging trends in the business world so that our worldwide subscribers can gain an edge over the relentless competition.

These two website seem relevant to me for any kind of entrepreneur who wants to start a business. On these websites entrepreneurs will find some ideas of what kinds of business are successful / not successfull, in which part of the world, etc. The websites can give a lot of ideas to start a brand new business too, because sometimes people feel like they want to start a business but they do not know in which business area.


 * __My view of entrepreneurship (Pictures and Quotes):__**



"Life has no limitations, except the ones you make" (//Les Brown//, American author) The entrepreneur is the one that see an opportunity while other can see risks. Entrepreneurs are those who dare.



Two things about that picture : In my opinion, a successful entrepreneur is someone who has a lot of ideas in mind, but it is not enough. A successful entrepreneur is someone who knows how to turn his/her ideas into successful projects.
 * "Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower" (Steve Jobs, Apple co-founder)

I quote one of my classmates because I share his idea that you can be an entrepreneur, no matter how old you are. I also quote him because I like the picture he chose to illustrate that point. (See its own page : Link)
 * "There is no age to be an entrepreneur" (Thomas Darcel, English track students)

My own picture:



This picture deals with three main elements to be a successfully entrepreneur. He/She is : - someone who knows how to get out of the crowd, get out of the fog to find "The" opportunity, find the one that will lead to success. (find the hill without fog) - someone who does not stop in the middle of a project, someone who is able to climb the mountain till the summet. - someone who is able to take a moment afterwards and think about his/her project while he/she look at the others and see where is the difference with the others who failed, who are still in the fog.

__**Trends :**__
 @http://trendwatching.com/ This website is really relevant for any kind of entrepreneur. The internet users who surf on this website will have access to a large range of new trends and future trends. That could help them for their own business idea. And more than just following those trends, it could help them to go a step further and create their own new trend. (See below : "Next Practices Not Best practices" ).

Currently on this website, it is the "FUNCTIONALL" trend that is highlighted as the trend of February 2010. It is all about a "new breed of products that are simple, small and/or cheap (with a dash of sustainability), giving them global appeal, from India to Sweden". With my business idea I am not far from this idea where "simple" and "cheap" are the key words. Indeed, //The Car of Liberty// is both : it will propose very cheap price and it will be very easy to use.

Since the start of the subprimes crisis, the trend is to buy cheap products / services while trying to care about the environmental issues. Once again, my business proposal will satisfy those new needs. //The Car of Liberty// is a cheap and ecofriendly solution to people who really need a car from time to time and for short distance, people who can not afford one and who care about environment. Besides, at the moment, the electric cars are not really used because of a too limited autonomy.//The Car of Liberty// will go a step further renting a car 100 % electric : the brand new Citröen C-Zero that has a large autonomy of 130 km.

While doing my researches, I also found another website on business trends. This website would be more relevant for the small business such as my business idea. Here is the link of this website : http://smallbiztrends.com/

Then, I do believe that the tomorrow's trends are just right in front of us at the moment. That is why I think entrepreneur should always read the newspapers, and all kind of newpapers (not only the economics one). It will help them to understand the current world but also to imagine the future one.

**__Next Practices Not Best Practices :__**
A general definition of "Best practices" could be :
 * "**A **best practice** is a technique, method, process, activity, incentive, or reward that is believed to be more effective at delivering a particular outcome than any other technique, method, process, etc. when applied to a particular condition or circumstance".

The idea of "Next practices" is to go a sept further. It is not about doing things in the best way ever. The important is to create the future trends, to innovate again and again. Quality is a never-ending process.

Next Practices Help you create the future. "Next practice development isn’t about making something more efficient; instead, it is about a fundamental transformation of the core business activity." (Dr John Sullivan, 2006)

Dr John Sullivan is a well-known thought leader in HR. Have a look at his article "Seeking Out "Next practices", the Next generation of Best practices" This article deals with the concept of "Next Practices" and its implication regarding HR Management.

__**Blue Ocean strategy Vs Red Ocean strategy**__ :

We use the terms red and blue oceans to denote the market universe. Red oceans are all the industries in existence today - the known market space. Here companies try to outperform their rivals, to grab a greater share of existing demand. Blue oceans, in contrast, denote all the industries not in existence today - the unknown market space, untainted by competition. In blue oceans, demand is created rather than fought over.

Some examples of Blue Ocean strategy :

- NetJet NetJet offers fractional ownership and rental of private business jets. The company created a new demand and doing so, they did (and still do) not have to fight against competitors to get more market shares. This is the perfect example of a blue Ocean strategy.

- Body Shop Body Shop creates and sells beauty products but they do not compete in the same market as the common crowded one of beauty products. Body Shop understood the increasing demand for naturally and green products and the company used it to differentiate their offers and position itself into a new market. The company sell beauty products that are natural, environmentally friendly and ethical.

- Starbucks: Starbucks is not another coffee shop where good coffees are sold. The idea was to create a place where people will meet and socialise; a place to stay after work and before going home. It created a really community, a new lifestyle. When a customer go to Starbucks, it is not only to have a coffee, it is above all to find a place where he/she will feel confortable, feel at ease.

-**The Car of Liberty**: My business proposal corresponds to a blue ocean strategy. //The Car of Liberty// will create a new demand, a new market. It will not compete on the car rental market because //The Car of Liberty// is about short renting periods (for less than one day during the week and less than two during the week end) and it is about short distances. Besides, the price is much cheaper with my business proposal than with common car rental office. //The Car of Liberty// is about satisfying the day-to-day needs for a car and not the exceptional needs to go on holiday for instance. My business will compete with the buses, the trams, the trains, etc. but only to a certain extent. Once again, they do not cover the same needs. One fundamental point of differentiation is that //The Car of Liberty// will offer a great deal of autonomy to the users that they can not find any where.