Entrepreneurship: Coworking- experience and synergies for new entrepreneours

Group no. 2: Diana Patricia, Alberto Rengel, Pablo Gonzalez, Carlos Cerdan

Main idea:
The idea goes beyond offering a physic place to work. Our proposal is related to the experience that all entrepreneurs need to straighten their business and get into path of the success.

We offer “places to work” (like their office), at cheap prices and in a common place. The rental will depend on the time that the person plans to use the place. We could offer places (with services, such as access to meeting room) and the entrepreneurship pays depending on their necessity and use. This common place is a great opportunity to strengthen networking, hubs, or even the creation of clusters…. (for the future). We also have though that it will be interesting to partners with consultancies (laws, and economic) in order to make easier to the entrepreneurship the process. We offer Common room, resting room, working area, fax, printer, copier, scanner. Meeting room with projector. Maybe doing an analysis how is on going the company.
The idea is to bring together all the facilities that allow young entrepreneurs being part of the network that weaves our society. This will be a space of interaction between entrepreneurs which business could be complemented each other. It is about promoting collective thinking, innovation and development of business with higher impact (measure in success and sustainability).

This is all about taking the best advantage of the economies of agglomeration.

Target: entrepreneurs in the services sector.

PESTEL:

Political: Public policies that the government promote to make easier the set up of companies. Risk capital fund. Banks and private sector. International recognition.

Socio-cultural future: Shifts towards a change of culture. People have to be more entrepreur. In Spain people is sometimes reluctant to set up companies and it can be a most cheap way to do it. We can offer places to work. We let people to have sharing spaces, without paying the cost needed to have an office. Also, we can offer synergies where the different entrepreneur can find best solutions to set up the company taking into account different ideas. Sometimes people don’t want to work at home so, for a cheap price we can offer places to work and rooms for meetings.

Economic future: improve the idea because we are under an economic crisis in with for the trust is harm. It affects to the motivation to create companies which are our potential clients. Low salaries. Probably it will be important to wait until better economic situation. Nobody wants to spend. People are scared about the situation. There is not consumption.
Cost: 20 €/m2.

Environmental future: It affects positively the new green tendency because our project offers green actions. We can promote public transportation, car sharing, organic food, fair trade label, recycled paper. Leds.

Legal future: possible changes in the law to boost and make easier to new entrepreneurs the launching of new companies

SWOT analysis:

Strengths:

Idea that responds to the current necessities that society of networks impels and takes advantage of it.
Creates add-value for entrepreneurs business (now and in the future), in the way the offer cover a mix of connected services: physical space (with all the facilities), conferences and advice on topics strategic topics, and all the information needed for the business administration (who and where).
It’s an idea that contributes to avoid the duplication of efforts (among entrepreneurs and other organizations)
It is attractive for those who are starting business
Even there are some places of co-working in Madrid, all of the have a specific focus on the offer of the physical space.
It’s an idea that does not requires a huge initial investment

Weaknesses:

Lack of experience in the control of different entrepreneurs
Difficulty to find new entrepreneurship because of the economical crisis
Problems to find the best financial advice, tax/legal consultancy
Distribution of the spaces, it will be important to find the best possible distribution in order to make the maximum profit possible without losing the real needs of our clients.
How to define the real solutions that we offer.
Capacity to differ from other co-working solutions (competency)
Capacity to segment our potential customers
Strategic location in order to attract our clients
Establish the price to be attractive to our clients
Marketing campaign important.
Find the best Internet, media to promote our company
It is important to update this SWOT according to our entrepreneurs
Capacity to analyse an accurate rate of return due to the difficulty to attract new clients
Investment risk high considering that, currently, we still do not have clients

Opportunities:

Tax incentives and subsidies for entrepreneurs to make that more people might be encouraged to be an entrepreneur and therefore more people interested in our idea.
The end of the economic crisis will make more people be encouraged to be an entrepreneur.
Find an office block with a relatively low rent because of the economic crisis.
Because of the success of our business, competition to acquire our areas for outside companies (cafeteria, stationery…)
Find future speakers to our conferences from our new entrepreneurs.

Threats:

Global crisis: the creation of new companies is now more difficult than ever due to the global crisis. We depend on new entrepreneurs that are establishing new businesses, and that only happens if the economic environment fosters new businesses opportunities.
Lack of credit: banks are not giving credit in Spain, the investment to implement the idea must come from initial shareholders.
Other co-working spaces such as “Madrid HUB” are close competitors providing services to entrepreneurs. It is important to know them in order to adapt the prices.
Office rental prices: the real estate bubble in Spain has put in the market one million of empty houses and offices. If prices decrease too much, it will be affordable for entrepreneurs to rent a whole office instead of a co-working space.

Comments Off on Entrepreneurship: Coworking- experience and synergies for new entrepreneours / 06 Feb 2012 por Carlos Cerdan Infantes
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Urban development. Blog #2. What is causing the food bubble and what are the solutions?

The price of agricultural commodities has drastically increased in the past years creating a global food price bubble. “The ensuing crisis has resulted in a 50-200% increase in selected commodity prices, driven 110 million people into poverty and added 44 million more to the undernourished.” (UNEP,The Environmental Food Crisis) Adam Smith’s invisible hand theory cannot be applied to a basic need of life such as food, nor should it be applied to another vital asset: water. The idea that the food market will regulate itself is inaccurate and has proven so in the past years. Global food prices have been volatile from 1872 to present. Prices have skyrockets and are now higher then they were since 1984. It is predicted that they could be even worse with the droughts seen across the world devastating harvest (for example in China, Russia and Argentina). The biggest economic failure is that 925 million people are starving and living with hunger as of 2011. (growing a better future) World food demand depends chiefly on population and income, both of which multiply predictably and slowly however, this is not the sole reason for the massive spikes in the global food prices.

When droughts and floods hit countries assure their own supplies by banning exports regardless of the consequences of the importers. Importers then in turn panic and quickly restock grain reserves. This domino affect coupled with the weaker dollar “makes restocking cheaper in local currencies and dearer oil pushes up the cost of inputs,” (The Economist) Furthermore, the World Bank, specifically Bafis and Haniotis 2010 implement speculation: “the financialisation of commodities in the price surges and declines,” and poignantly states that the price variability has overwhelmed price trends for important commodities. There is a lot of mal practice in the trading and buying of food. Stern and strict laws but be implemented for fair trade.

Food production is predicted to rise 70% by 2050 to meet the demands of population growth. However, climate change, land diminishing at alarming rates and water supplies drying up how will developing countries’ megacities and the developed world meet the demand of the future 9 billion people. “Up to 25% of the world food production may become lost during this century as a result of climate change, water scarcity, invasive pests and land degradation.” (UNEP) We need to be investing in the farmers, encouraging education and technology to promote growth. I stand firmly on the belief that education is the key to development and the answer to all the world’s problems. As mentioned in class the Brazil’s Bolsa Familia program is a great incentive. A mother receives a small stipend on the condition that her children attend school and get a doctors check up. In order to boost farmer yield we need to get rid of trade barriers and subsidies. In America case they need to encourage organic farming, cut subsidies and forget biofuels that are environmentally destructive and competing with food supplies.
The demand for food and water will only continue to grow as population growth climbs rapidly. There is a long trend of falling inflation-adjusted agricultural prices will surely lead to the price bubble popping. As the impoverished rights are limited, the big industrial powers are manipulating the land and the market for profitable gain. Trade rules hinder poor countries to take advantage of trade opportunities. It is a sad day when we are willing to deprive people of food all in the interest in making money.

Work Cited
Most my information came from class and the class readings. I am always confused when things become facts in my head and how to cite them, for instance I know 925 million people are now starving which is cited in many articles.
The Environmental Food Crisis.” United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) – Home Page. Web. 06 Feb. 2012. .

A Report on Emergency Food Distribution in the US in 2009. Rep. Chicago: Feeding America, 2009. Print.

“Crisis Prevention; The Future of Food.” The Economist (US) 26 Feb. 2011. Print.

· Oxfam (2011) Growing a better future: Food Justice in a Resource Constrained World. Available at

http://www.oxfam.org/sites/www.oxfam.org/files/growing-a-better-future-010611-en.pdf

· J. Von Braun (2008) ‘Food and Financial Crises: Implications for Agriculture and the Poor’, IFPRI Food
Policy Report. Washington DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. Available at

http://www.ifpri.org/publication/food-and-financial-crises

· FAO (2009): ‘How to Feed the World in 2050’. Available at

http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/templates/wsfs/docs/expert_paper/How_to_Feed_the_World_in_2050.

pdf

· Olivier De Schutter (2010): Food Commodities Speculation and Food Price Crises. Available at:

http://www.makefinancework.org/IMG/pdf/un_deschutter_2010_commodity_speculation.pdf

2 comentarios / 06 Feb 2012 por Lauren Musiello
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Session 6: Environmental and Natural Resource Management

Certification tools key for environmental awareness in business

By Natalia Díaz, Rodrigo Capriles and Antonio Moreno

Comments Off on Session 6: Environmental and Natural Resource Management / 06 Feb 2012 por Antonio Calixto Moreno Zarco
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Session 5: Environmental and Natural Resource Management

Waste management first step to decrease environmental pollution

By Natalia Díaz, Rodrigo Capriles and Antonio Moreno.

Comments Off on Session 5: Environmental and Natural Resource Management / 06 Feb 2012 por Antonio Calixto Moreno Zarco
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Innovación – En busca de ventajas competitivas

Un estudio realizado por 3M, afirmó que las ideas de productos creadas por los usuarios innovadores tenían unas ventas 8 veces superiores a las de los productos generados internamente en la empresa. Esto tiene mucho sentido, pues los consumidores saben lo que quieren. Esta es la idea de la innovación dirigida por los usuarios, un método de bajo coste, alta participación y con enormes posibilidades de crecer. Es una herramienta que le permite a la empresa conocer y acercarse a sus clientes y en algunos casos hasta puede garantizar que los productos se vayan a vender. (2)

Son varias las empresas que utilizan la innovación dirigida; tiendas de moda, zapatos, joyas e incluso coches buscan que el cliente se sienta identificado. Por ejemplo, la empresa Frito-Lay en Colombia en 2010 lanzó un concurso invitando a los usuarios a comunicar qué sabor sería el ideal para las patatas fritas. Los resultados fueron sorprendentes y la empresa ha logrado altísimos índices de participación y ventas. (1)

Otro ejemplo es de la empresa Hasbro, que abrió una consulta web en la que las personas podía escoger los 22 lugares favoritos Colombia y los rincones más votados aparecieron en el tablero de Monopoly Colombia. Con más de 160.000 votos y ventas por más de 275 millones de unidades, esta actividad ya se ha replicado en 111 países. Con esto Hasbro logró crear un vínculo sentimental con sus clientes. (1)

Cabe destacar que las actividades de innovación dirigida por los usuarios no son solo para producto. Este es el caso de Coca Cola, que abrió un espacio en su página web para que los consumidores propongan diseños para la etiqueta de una edición especial de Sprite. (1)

Por otro lado, la compañía M&M permite a los usuarios diseñar chocolates con imágenes y mensajes propios a través de su página web. Así, permite interactuar con los productos, despierta su creatividad e incluso logra que las personas paguen un precio más alto por los dulces. ¡Yo por ejemplo creé mis M&Ms propios!

La innovación dirigida por los usuarios muestra cómo las ideas y la innovación pueden surgir en cualquier parte de la cadena de suministros. Lo que debe buscar la empresa son métodos y plataformas para incentivar a las personas a participar, pero sobretodo, generar una cultura de innovación en la organización. Lograr una innovación dirigida a los usuarios requiere de trabajo en equipo y entrenamiento constante para entender al consumidor y así lograr ventajas competitivas. Este no debe ser un trabajo aislado y requiere de un esfuerzo de marketing y comunicación importante para garantizar que las personas realmente se involucren con ideas diferentes que se traduzcan en ventas. De esta forma, las redes sociales y las páginas web cobran una alta importancia. Al fin y al cabo son esfuerzos que las empresas deberían hacer para humanizar sus marcas.

Algunos sitios para diseñar tus propios productos – en el límite de la innovación dirigida, la customización y la cocreación

– Coches personalizados en BMW: http://www.bmwusa.com/standard/content/byo/default.aspx

– Joyas a la medida en Zales: http://www.zales.com/category/index.jsp?categoryId=3737583

– Zapatos en Vans: http://shop.vans.com/catalog/Vans/en_US/category/custom-shoes.html#/selectShoe

– Maletas personalizadas en Rickshaw: http://www.rickshawbags.com/

– Ordenadores cómo tu elijas en Dell: www.dell.com

Como la innovación dirigida puede no funcionar para todo tipo de empresas, la innovación abierta puede ser una alternativa. Esta consiste en involucrar individuos y empresas externos para que aporten soluciones a diferentes retos. En el siguiente video se explica a fondo cómo funciona la innovación abierta y expone el ejemplo de cómo Ekin la ha implementado exitosamente para resolver problemáticas actuales: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ppj-khrs7v4.

“Las compañías que se catalogan como fuerte-mente innovadoras tienen una ventaja competitiva clara que se da en crecimiento y en retorno a sus inversionistas.s de ”articiparan y se apropiara de la marca“. (Eminem, 3)

Fuentes de información

1. El consumidor decide qué productos venden las marcas. Diario La República. 26 de noviembre de 2011. http://www.fltcomunicaciones.com/nueve/vermas.php?IdNoticia=117123

2. Innovación dirigida por el usuario. Creatividad e Innovación. 15 de noviembre de 2010.

http://creatividadeinnovacion.blogspot.com/2010/11/innovacion-dirigida-por-el-usuario.html

3. La Creatividad no es un asunto exclusivo para los productos Innovar beneficia Directamente. Periódico Portafolio. 11 de junio de 2011. http://www.portafolio.co/detalle_archivo/MAM-4614719

4. 5 Build-your-own Product Solutions for Merchants. Website Magazine. http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/archive/2011/10/10/build-your-own-product-e-commerce-solutions.aspx

5. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ppj-khrs7v4

Comments Off on Innovación – En busca de ventajas competitivas / 06 Feb 2012 por Laura Rubio
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The Medical Mirror, a MIT student INNOVATION

How It Works: Medical Mirror: The webcam in a monitor behind the two-way mirror captures the changes in the light reflected off the subject’s face when the heart beats. The computer translates the light data into a heart rate reading.

The Medical Mirror is a novel interactive interface that tracks and displays a user’s heart rate in real time without the need for external sensors. Currently, collection of physiological information requires users to strap on bulky sensors, chest straps, or sticky electrodes. The Medical Mirror allows contact-free measurements of physiological information using a basic imaging device. When a user looks into the mirror, an image sensor detects and tracks the location of his or her face over time. By combining techniques in computer vision and advanced signal processing, the user’s heart rate is then computed from the optical signal reflected off the face. The user’s heart rate is displayed on the mirror, allowing visualization of both the user’s physical appearance and physiological state.

This project illustrates an innovative approach to pervasive health monitoring based on state-of-the-art technology. The Medical Mirror fits seamlessly into the ambient home environment, blending the data collection process into the course of daily routines. It is intended to provide a convenient way for people to track their daily health when they use the mirror for shaving, brushing teeth, etc.

So far, graduate student Ming-Zher Poh has demonstrated that the system can indeed extract accurate pulse measurements from ordinary low-resolution webcam imagery. Now he’s working on extending the capabilities so it can measure respiration and blood-oxygen levels. He hopes eventually to be able to monitor blood pressure as well. Initial results of his work, carried out with the help of Media Lab student Daniel McDuff and Professor of Media Arts and Sciences Rosalind Picard, were published earlier this year in the journal Optics Express.(1)

Pinche aquí para ver el vídeo

In my opinion this kind of innovations demonstrate that everyone could innovate, without any limit or barriers of knowledge, we need just a trigger and then develop our idea with feedbacks and go beyond.

It’s a clear example of Open Innovation/User Lead Innovation, since it comes from a possible final user and that could be undertake and develop with the knowledge of some bigger company of the sector; it shows the potential of an idea and the opportunity that an open innovation could give to our society and add a huge value even though it comes from a “simple” student and not from a R&D department of a big multinational.

I like to figure the same success for the project that we (EOI students) are going to begin and which we’ll present in July.

Be innovative then!

References:

(1) http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2010/pulse-camera-1004.html

Comments Off on The Medical Mirror, a MIT student INNOVATION / 06 Feb 2012 por Luca Palma
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Open Innovation, society participation

I like pretty much the idea of open innovation, which can be expressed as the evolution or adaptation of the concept of “creating”, toward the features of the current society.

Today the world is fast: information, which also becomes more accessible, flows in real time all over the world interconnecting people. Different places and cultures are actually more interconnected than ever, since the present economic model has driven topics like mobility, commercial exchanges or also environmental issues to be global: events occurring somewhere could affect consistently outcomes somewhere else. The world is definitely smaller.

Yet, the phenomenon of globalization, by most also considered as “global neoliberalism” carries more and more doubts about its intention and effectiveness to promote human development world-wide.

Avoiding to go deeper into the discussion, I just mention a truth: in today’s society there is a compelling need for transparency and accountability; in addition, there is an increasing need for integration, participation and equity.

To summarize in today’s very interconnected society, activities led at the expenses of others are not possible anymore, there is a call for the engagement of all “stakeholders” involved in a process, if the process is about to be successful.

How it is possible when considering business innovation?

Open innovation represents the response to business’s challenges. If the trend is truly toward open and free markets, also the business itself has to open the door: innovation can be a process of integration of ideas, internally and externally which better creates successful outcomes; innovation can be a more democratic process by which outcomes really express and satisfy society’s needs.

Said that, in today’s complex world, a main aspect of business management must change in order to thrive: the leader of yesterday gave orders, the leader of today asks for inputs.

Pinche aquí para ver el vídeo

1 comentario / 06 Feb 2012 por Francesco Mazzeo
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Climate Change Vulnerability: Malaysia

According to the Climate Vulnerability Monitor report of 2010, Malaysia is in general moderately affected by climate change in terms of health impact, habitat loss, and weather disasters. Nonetheless, the report shows that in current trends as well as future forecasts for 2030, climate change will place severe stress on the country’s economy.

Source: Climate Vulnerability Monitor

Under the Readiness Matrix of the Global Adaptation Index (GAIN), Malaysia received a low vulnerability score and high readiness, which places it in the lower-right quadrant of the matrix.

According to GAIN, this means that adaptation challenges could still exist in Malaysia, however it would require little assistance in dealing with them. As seen in the chart below, Malaysia’s GAIN rankings from years 1995 to 2010 indicates that although Malaysia’s position in the order of the ranking has moved up and down over the years, it has nevertheless managed to remain at a generally stable and consistent position.

Source: http://index.gain.org/country/malaysia

It is interesting to note that the report that was prepared by Climate Vulnerability Monitor mentions that almost every country assessed registers high vulnerabilities to at least one climate change impact area (2010 to 2030). Taking also into consideration the climate change challenges that neighbouring countries would experience, and how it could affect the growth of Malaysia’s economy, it is crucial for Malaysia to commit and invest on efforts to reduce the impacts of climate change and mitigate the problems that are associated with it.

Comments Off on Climate Change Vulnerability: Malaysia / 06 Feb 2012 por Syafrina Sharif
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Vulnerability to climate change: Venezuela

When analyzing Venezuela’s vulnerability respecting climate change, we must understand the country’s geography to understand its high vulnerability. The variety of its landscapes have a direct relation respecting to ecosystems, habitats and the risks of each form of landscape to humans.

South region is covered by the Amazonas. Deforestations issues and global warming are raising considerably the vulnerability over the forests to burn, threatening biodiversity in this sense. On the other hand, El Niño and La Niña are phenomena which bring droughts or excessive rains. When droughts are produced over this region, hydro power is considerably affected, especially when we consider that the biggest dams are fed with the water coming from rivers which are born in this jungle region. Venezuela depends on 70% hydro to meet its electricity demand.

Another factor we should consider about La Niña specifically is that when high levels of rains come and flooding occurs, Dengue, cutaneous leishmaniasis and Malaria are diseases that spread very easily.

Northern part is dominated by coastline, having mountains also sharing this scenery. In this regions risk of flooding or landslides have increased. Most of the population is in this area, being the country vulnerable in this sense, especially in the regions where sea and mountain meet. Respecting to biodiversity and habitats, the rise of sea level has contributed to the loss of mangroves, affecting local plants and animals that used to live in these areas. Urbanization has also affectes this type of habitats.

The Llanos region (large extensions of flatlands which cover a large portion of the territory), if considered as a whole, holds the major cultivable lands in the country. Droughts or excessive rains have affected crops and yields respectively, affecting the countries food security and pushing people to look for better conditions in the city, consequently, slums and poverty problems have been favored by this factor. Slums favor the spread of diseases and HIV’s.

The Andes has been losing its biodiversity for climatic reasons. Taking into consideration that this region is a great chain of big mountains, the risk of slides have also increased, affecting agriculture and populations along.

As visible, Venezuela is a country that has high vulnerability when it comes to population, biodiversity and habitats. The different climatic regions upraise different risks for their diverse nature.

Sources:

Magrin, G., C. Gay García, D. Cruz Choque, J.C. Giménez, A.R. Moreno, G.J. Nagy, C. Nobre and A. Villamizar, 2007: Latin America.Climate Change 2007: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Fourth Assessment Report of theIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, M.L. Parry, O.F. Canziani, J.P. Palutikof, P.J. van der Linden and C.E. Hanson, Eds.,Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 581-615.

The Climate Vulnerability Monitor (2010). Available at: http://daraint.org/climate-vulnerability-monitor/climate-vulnerability-monitor-2010/ . Last accessed 05/02/2012

Comments Off on Vulnerability to climate change: Venezuela / 06 Feb 2012 por Rodrigo Capriles Mazzei
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Climate Change Blog 2: Brazil Vulnerability and Adaptation Index

Overall Brazil Vulnerability

According to the Climate Vulnerability Monitor, Brazil presents a low to moderate vulnerability on weather disaster and habitat loss but high on health Impact and economic distress. These two vulnerable factors can be seen in the higher epidemics of waterborne vectors such as Dengue in many urban areas and vector-borne sickness such as Malaria and Yellow Fever which appears in the central and northern areas of the country.

Floods in Brazil is a common event due its climate condition, change of river infrastructure and unplanned urbanization, a fact that create both health impacts and economic distress on affected population.

On the other hand variation of rainfall has been affecting agriculture production, and since agriculture accounts for a large share of exports in Brazil this vulnerability causes great economic distress in special for poorer farmers.

According to the Global Adaptation Index, Brazil lies in a good position to face, to adapt and to increase its resilience to climate change. Important actors to demonstrate country`s readiness is the power of governmental institutions.

In the case of Brazil a legal article of Federal Constitution establishes “All have the right to an ecologically balanced environment which is an asset of common use and essential to a healthy quality of life, and both the Government and the community shall have the duty to defend and preserve it for present and future generations”.¹

However, the environmental legislation is not well enforced n Brazil, because of the size of the country and conflict of interest that drives economic development in an unsustainable way.

This can be verified by the worst indexes on infrastructure related to energy sensitiveness and transport infrastructure.

Infrastructure Worst Performer on Global Adaptation Index