Venture Concept No. 2

Opportunity: 

            Children and young adults today are becoming more fascinated with sports every year. America has a set of sports that people become obsessed with, therefore children go after those sports with passion, leaving the lesser known sports in the dust. Golf is an interesting game, and it has captured the lives of many people. Without young adults and children getting into the game, the sport itself will become stagnant, not able to keep up with the other sports around it. The potential customers are young adults and children, needing  to find a sport they like and enjoy as well as learn to become good at it. Golf isn’t like basketball or football, it doesn’t require you to be strong, tall, or fast. It is a kid friendly game that is open to anyone. The market isn’t defined by gender or age, and advertises itself by the pure beauty that is a golf course. The opportunity to open up a junior golf tour that gets kids addicted to the game, while also making it competitive for older young adults to pursue their dreams of one day playing golf in college is a window that can be open at all times. Customers need a cheap and discounted experience that is also fun and satisfying. Golf can be a hard game, and it is my job to make it less intimidating. 

Innovation: 

            This program is all about creativity and competition. Together, these two values make this program separate from other junior golf tours in that is brings young children up to play the game, and develops them into becoming a great competitor. This is similar to what could possibly be called a “school for golf”, in that young kids will learn the basics, play with equipment that makes the game much easier as well as as making a “par” that can show progress. The older kids will play a “golf tour” that is similar to the PGA tour, with “Majors” and “Tour Championships”. Once there are good golfers on the tour, this reputation will lead to colleges wanting to recruit from these specific tournaments. Membership in this tour would require money, but also get discounts at area golf courses as well as college recruiting tips and discounted equipment. Tournaments would cost a separate fee as well, and there would be exemptions for players who are past champions of tournaments or championship leaders. The young kids group would work almost like boy scouts, where you earn medals or skills to bring you to the next level. Once that child is ready to compete, he or she can choose what tournaments they want to play in, and they will be put with their certain age group. Tournaments would come in a package deal, making them cheaper that\n AJGA or SJGT tournaments. The average tournament(AJGA) would cost around $300, but with a package deal a golfer can pay $300 for 2 tournaments, and a lesson with a golf coach. Memberships would range based on what level a child is at.

Venture Concept:

            I believe the customer would switch to this program because junior golf tours can be extremely complicated to navigate and pay for. When I was a junior golfer, I played on three different tours, paid for three different memberships, and also paid for each tournament. I always wished there was a tour that could just do all of this in one, while also getting smaller kids into the game. One tour I was on was called The First Tee of Northwest Florida, that brought kids up and taught them golf. They would also go play on a separate tour where they were able to look up to the older kids like myself and get inspired to win tournaments. Kids are motivated by competition and kids that are older than them. Having a single program that streamlines a child from learning to play the game, to working their way up and spectating, to finally being able to compete for themselves is a great way to keep kids interest in golf throughout their childhood. The classes would also include lessons on the industry itself, so a young adult about to go to college can look into what field they may want to go into if competing doesn’t work out. The weaknesses of this would be in the very beginning, trying to convince parents that this tour is better and more streamlined than the others. Once the prestige of the tour is built, more and more colleges and great junior players will look into playing in tournaments. I would organize this business by having assistant tournament directors directing the different types of events. I would have photographers photographing the kids to post on social media. I would also hire rules officials to support any rules issues we had, and finally I would hire a few golf coaches from area courses to work with me in bringing the kids discounted lessons and clinics. All in all, I would need about 3-5full-time employees, and 4-6 part-time employees to run the program

Minor Elements: 

            I believe my most import resource in order to make this work would be to make this tour feel like a family rather than just a tour. A lot of times junior tours act like they don’t care enough about the growth of the game, rather just getting the best players to play their tournament. I would make sure every child and family feels welcome at every event. I would like for this tour to eventually work its way in helping high school athletes become collegiate athletes, and work on making this tour a Junior World Golf Rankings program. In 5 years, I would want for the best juniors in the nation to play my tournaments, to inspire the young kids to be as great as them. This will in term keep young kids excited about that game, and continuing to grow the sport I love.

Revisions: 
     I actually didn't get any feedback that would require me to change my concept. I really put thought into my venture and I'm very happy that I have come up with something that people respect and have good things to say about. One person said that this concept could work worldwide, which was something I hadn't thought about. However this would be something that would have to be attained if my business is really successful, and it may be out of my range as far as how long it may take to get to that point. Because of the good comments but not much feedback on change, I decided to keep it as is. I read though the venture once more and thought that it was a solid start, one that I could definitely get rolling if I ever decided to. This was a great project, and I enjoyed the development and steps it took to get to this point. 

Reading Reflection No. 3

Grinding it Out: The Making of McDonalds by Ray Kroc

      This was a very interesting read, and it was actually my second choice behind Steve Jobs, which is what I wrote about for my first reflection. The making of McDonalds is a huge deal for America, and it is a place where all of us have gone to, or still go to as college students trying to save a little bit of money. It surprise me that the two titans of industry who created McDonalds didn't see eye to eye on many things, and that despite these issues the company continued to run like a well oiled machine. I admired that Ray Kroc was so driven to complete his goals, however I wasn't impressed with how he let it effect his personal life the way it did, especially with his business partner. This relationship between Ray and Harry was extremely controversial, however Ray was able to keep a sound mind through all of this, take control, and turn this company into what it is today.
     The core competencies that Ray showed were ones of determination. He was never afraid to go after something, whether it be a networking connection, a business idea, or a controversial decision he was forced to make. Because of this value, he was able to push away he competitors and people that were dragging him down so that the business would be the most successful he could make it. Although this came at a price, by loosing family members, close friends, and even his wife, whom he left for another married women. The point of this competency, whether it be good or bad, is that he didn't let anyone get in his way.
    Nothing was really confusing to me about this reading. The only thing that I could think of that made me raise my eyebrows were that fact that Ray and Harry were trying to work on two different aspects of the business, meaning hamburgers and real estate, but for some reason when they jumped the line to help each other their personalities didn't let them take advice from each other. This made for a very sticky situation for years to come.
      If I had two questions for Kroc, I would ask him if he would ever consider making these meals healthier for the general public so that we don't have an obesity crisis, and I would also ask how they found the supplier for their famous french fries. The fries are still delicious and I crave them every week. McDonalds actually announced this week that they were getting rid of their artificial preserves in their chicken nuggets. I would really like to ask him about this because I don't think the foresaw the issues with what their burgers would cause for people who sometimes don't have a lot of self control...... like myself.
    I would like to think Kroc worked so hard throughout his career that he may have forgotten what wasn't hard work. This is how I want to be someday with whatever I get myself into. I feel like the harder you work, the more normal it feels to have the drive that he had from day to day. College has really brought out this aspect in me, and I am looking forward to continue working hard when I earn my degree and start my career.

Final Reflection

      As I look at my blog, I found it really easy to figure out which project stuck out to me the most. We'll have to go way back to the second week of class, to the project titled "Bug List". The Bug List was a great project that really got me into the class while also getting my mind churning. It gave me a feel for how I had to critically think for this class throughout the year. It was extremely difficult to think about 20 different "Bugs" that I had in my life. Though most of my bugs were due to the fact that I was driving back home, and that I was dealing with some really bad drivers at the time. As far as my most proud accomplishment, I think that just completing my venture was a huge goal of mine. Really developing my ideas made me think more entrepreneurial.
     I do believe that I have developed more a mindset for this type of career. I feel like I was just going with the flow before this class, and now I realize that I am going to have to step it up and put myself out there in order to be successful in anything I do. I feel like I have moved one step closer in developing my personality so that way one day I will be able to have the skills to develop good business decisions and solid networking with whatever company I associate myself with.
     The one thing I would improve about this class is reduce the amount of interview projects. After a while, the experience gets a little repetitive. Though it is the most difficult part of this class, I think we could possibly think of some ways to replace the projects with different ideas that could make us more well rounded. Maybe instead of talking to people we don't know, we can talk to people we do know, or we could find peer reviewed articles from professionals that could replace some of the interviews. The interviews serve a great purpose and they are a great part of the class, but I don't think that there should be as many as there are now.
     This was a great class, and I had a great experience with all the projects. I feel like I learned more than I would have in a normal exam run class and I'm sure people feel the same way I do.

Making It Real

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DaTTj2jo6iP35BuJxbwT5pXfyDPSqVWQmUEUUKqU0wA/edit?usp=sharing

My Exit Strategy

1) I intend on staying with my Junior Golf Tour for decades to come. I believe that this business is not about selling to the highest bidder, but that I will have an influence on junior golf for the years to come. I would need to stay as long as possible to ensure that my program grows and reaches across the nation to the best junior golfers so that they can further their career.

2) As stated before, I believe I have a duty to grow the game. The easiest way to grow the game is to get more kids involved, and also keep them involved throughout their grade school career. I won't be able to grow the game in just a few years, and will need to stay in the program for decades to ensure the steady growth of my program and the game. I don't know what I would do if I let another person run the business I created.

3) I believe that my exit strategy definitely influences most decisions I've made on this particular venture. With my goal in growing the game the program is based upon, I would have dedicated my life to making sure this program is successful. Making sure that I am able to watch these young kids grow not only in height and age, but with their passion for the game would be something that would obviously take me more than a few years. With that, having a long career, retiring at a decent age, and running the program I created with help from many people over the years, this is an exit strategy I firmly stand behind in order to achieve my goals .

Celebrating Failure

1) This semester I attempted to practice as hard as I could to qualify for the state golf tournaments. I decided that I needed to stop seeing a golf instructor, and work on my golf swing on my own. At first, it worked very well, as I was able to qualify for the first two tournaments I entered. However, due to the fact that I wasn't taking care of my body, and I was swinging incorrectly, I ended up hurting my back, causing me to miss out on the remainder of the season. I am still recovering as I am writing this, and I can't wait to get back to swinging the club again!

2) I learned that I have a great self motivation skill when I want something really bad, however a little guidance can really help me in the long run and stop me if I'm making mistakes.

3) I believe failure is very humbling. One moment you could be on top of the world, the next you can be down in the dirt. It teaches you more life lessons than any type of success could give you. The most successful people in this world use failure as a tool to move ahead and let it open new doors in their future. When I get back to hiting golf balls, I will have learned a lot more about my game and physical ability. This past year I've had some pretty big failures, ones that I expected not to happen. I feel like I handle failure a lot better than most, in that Ive already been through a lot in my childhood and realize that the clouds will clear eventually if you keep blowing them away. I feel as if I have always been about taking risks throughout my life, and this class definitely validated that.

Venture Concept No. 1

Opportunity:

            Children and young adults today are becoming more fascinated with sports every year. America has a set of sports that people become obsessed with, therefore children go after those sports with passion, leaving the lesser known sports in the dust. Golf is an interesting game, and it has captured the lives of many people. Without young adults and children getting into the game, the sport itself will become stagnant, not able to keep up with the other sports around it. The potential customers are young adults and children, needing  to find a sport they like and enjoy as well as learn to become good at it. Golf isn’t like basketball or football, it doesn’t require you to be strong, tall, or fast. It is a kid friendly game that is open to anyone. The market isn’t defined by gender or age, and advertises itself by the pure beauty that is a golf course. The opportunity to open up a junior golf tour that gets kids addicted to the game, while also making it competitive for older young adults to pursue their dreams of one day playing golf in college is a window that can be open at all times. Customers need a cheap and discounted experience that is also fun and satisfying. Golf can be a hard game, and it is my job to make it less intimidating.

Innovation:

            This program is all about creativity and competition. Together, these two values make this program separate from other junior golf tours in that is brings young children up to play the game, and develops them into becoming a great competitor. This is similar to what could possibly be called a “school for golf”, in that young kids will learn the basics, play with equipment that makes the game much easier as well as as making a “par” that can show progress. The older kids will play a “golf tour” that is similar to the PGA tour, with “Majors” and “Tour Championships”. Once there are good golfers on the tour, this reputation will lead to colleges wanting to recruit from these specific tournaments. Membership in this tour would require money, but also get discounts at area golf courses as well as college recruiting tips and discounted equipment. Tournaments would cost a separate fee as well, and there would be exemptions for players who are past champions of tournaments or championship leaders. The young kids group would work almost like boy scouts, where you earn medals or skills to bring you to the next level. Once that child is ready to compete, he or she can choose what tournaments they want to play in, and they will be put with their certain age group. Tournaments would come in a package deal, making them cheaper that\n AJGA or SJGT tournaments. The average tournament(AJGA) would cost around $300, but with a package deal a golfer can pay $300 for 2 tournaments, and a lesson with a golf coach. Memberships would range based on what level a child is at.

Venture Concept:

            I believe the customer would switch to this program because junior golf tours can be extremely complicated to navigate and pay for. When I was a junior golfer, I played on three different tours, paid for three different memberships, and also paid for each tournament. I always wished there was a tour that could just do all of this in one, while also getting smaller kids into the game. One tour I was on was called The First Tee of Northwest Florida, that brought kids up and taught them golf. They would also go play on a separate tour where they were able to look up to the older kids like myself and get inspired to win tournaments. Kids are motivated by competition and kids that are older than them. Having a single program that streamlines a child from learning to play the game, to working their way up and spectating, to finally being able to compete for themselves is a great way to keep kids interest in golf throughout their childhood. The classes would also include lessons on the industry itself, so a young adult about to go to college can look into what field they may want to go into if competing doesn’t work out. The weaknesses of this would be in the very beginning, trying to convince parents that this tour is better and more streamlined than the others. Once the prestige of the tour is built, more and more colleges and great junior players will look into playing in tournaments. I would organize this business by having assistant tournament directors directing the different types of events. I would have photographers photographing the kids to post on social media. I would also hire rules officials to support any rules issues we had, and finally I would hire a few golf coaches from area courses to work with me in bringing the kids discounted lessons and clinics. All in all, I would need about 3-5full-time employees, and 4-6 part-time employees to run the program

Minor Elements:

            I believe my most import resource in order to make this work would be to make this tour feel like a family rather than just a tour. A lot of times junior tours act like they don’t care enough about the growth of the game, rather just getting the best players to play their tournament. I would make sure every child and family feels welcome at every event. I would like for this tour to eventually work its way in helping high school athletes become collegiate athletes, and work on making this tour a Junior World Golf Rankings program. In 5 years, I would want for the best juniors in the nation to play my tournaments, to inspire the young kids to be as great as them. This will in term keep young kids excited about that game, and continuing to grow the sport I love.