Action Plan 1

Action Plan

Student Name

Course Code

Professor Name

University Name

Location of Universiy

7th February 2021

Introduction 1
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The Challenges 1
Apprentice Challenge Analysis 1
Presentation Challenge 2
T-Shirt Challenge Analysis 2
Hotel Challenge 2

The Skills 3

Action Plan 3

Conclusion 5

References 6

Introduction

Today's business world runs on information. While this was always the case, the amount of

information generated and made available to businesses has increased exponentially as

technology has evolved. The growth of the Internet, in particular, has dramatically changed
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how businesses must think to survive in such a fast-paced environment because it has created

channels for information and communication between customers, suppliers, distributors, and

service providers that were not possible even ten years ago. The close to the instant flow of

information is what makes today's business world so different from those of the past and why

the ability to think critically, analyze trends, and creatively solve problems are all important

success factors for any organization. Four challenges were given for this assignment and each

helped in developing specific skills that are important in business. This is an analysis of the

things that were learned during this assignment.

The Challenges

Apprentice Challenge Analysis

The method of the apprentice challenge helped me with the branding, positioning, and

marketing of my new product. For instance, for the launch of YOP (the challenge question), I

used the "move out of an existing market into a new one" technique. This shows that they are

always expanding their market. The SWOT analysis, effectively helped me to identify

opportunities and threats in terms of capital investment and marketing strategies.

Presentation Challenge

The challenge was helpful to me in understanding how finances work. It also enhanced my

understanding of the market. Finances are an essential part of running a company. Market

economies are often described using supply and demand curves. The market is the place

where all the supply of goods and services comes together. Demand is what consumers ask

for and ultimately determine what products will be created, bought, and sold. This challenge

demonstrated this concept insightfully.

T-Shirt Challenge Analysis

This challenge aims to design a product or service, sell it and then figure out how much profit

relative to investment was made. This challenge gave me exposure to the entrepreneurial
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environment and helped me learn many things. This challenge is a good way to understand

the business opportunity and also how to conduct practical activities related to it. It helps you

build a database of ideas and learn about important aspects of any business, for instance,

business plan development, market research, and identification of markets.

Hotel Challenge

This challenge helped me understand the value of teamwork and consistency. It also helped

me understand the importance of market research. The challenge also made me understand

each group of consumers differs from others. The key to any successful marketing plan is a

thorough understanding of market conditions, including the needs of the customers. The best

way to determine these needs is through market research. The market research that was done

for this challenge helped in gaining an in-depth understanding of target consumers.

The Skills

This assignment helped me to gain the necessary skills needed for running a business. First, it

taught me the importance to develop my communication skills. Then this assignment made

me understand how to work in teams and the importance of teamwork. The limited timeframe

of the challenge helped me in developing skills in managing time. Also, the variety of tasks

given in this assignment sharpened my skills in excel and presentation. As a business

student, I have frequently found myself in situations where I was required to work in teams

and was given various tasks which involved working with numbers. This allowed me to gain

experience in excel which is the tool used by investors, financial analysts, and accountants. I

was also asked to give presentations on those numbers which helped enhance my

communication skills and how effectively I convey what I want through my slides and words.

My excel skills allowed me to analyze data and present relevant information that helped

convey what I was assuming or any problems with the numbers. This will help me do better

in academics and allow me the ability to predict future numbers and make more informed
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decisions. As I was working with numbers, I was required to master the software used for

accounting and finance. This made me very agile in dealing with Excel since it is the main

tool used in those fields. These projects allowed me to gain exposure to various departments

such as operations, finance, HR, and information technology which can be very helpful if I

wish to pursue a career in business. In operations, I was also exposed to the different

challenges they face which requires them to have both a good understanding of their business

and strong analytical skills.

Action Plan

In today's business world the branding of a company is very important, as it is one of the

major ways for clients and customers to differentiate between similar companies. The current

competitive market that holds a myriad of services and products for every type of customer

demands effective branding to distinguish a company from its competitors (Verčič, 2021). In

the next few years, I aim to understand more about branding and develop my skills in it. The

assignment and the challenges given helped me understand the importance of branding and I

plan to make a career in a business that is concerned with branding and marketing.

Independent business owners, whether they are the owners of a single small business or the

owners of a large corporation (Guffey et al., 2021), have to establish and promote their

brands. Small companies that sell products rather than services have image identities just as

much as corporations who sell products to consumers do. The assignment gave me insights

into how branding a product is an important promotional tool that helps customers to identify

the product with its manufacturer. Customers will buy a brand if they are satisfied with it

(Coffelt et al.,2016).

The next important thing that I have learned that will help me in the future is the value of

teamwork. In the coming years, I would like to shape my skills as a teamworker. One person

can rarely achieve success without help from more than one other person. With a team of
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people working together, each with their skills and abilities, the task is split into many small

segments (Ali et al., 2021). Each member can develop the skills needed for his or her job,

which helps them support each other and avoid stress and confusion in the workplace. The

challenges in the assignment helped me understand how every team needs a variety of people

with different strengths. A team of people needs to share their knowledge so that everyone

knows their role and can work together more efficiently (Burhan Ismael et al., 2021). This

allows employees to support one another, increasing workplace efficiency and reducing

workplace stress. For instance, if your team is working on marketing and sales, one person

could be good at writing sales copy, one person good at designing websites, and another

person good at research. When communicating about work, ensure the communication

channel is professional, accurate, and concise in tone. Effective meetings can occur with any

mix of people from around the world through Internet collaboration technology.

For any business to grow proper analytical skill is very important. Business analysis skills

encompass both the process and discipline required to introduce as well as manage changes in

an organization. It is a very important function because it helps to deal with the problems,

issues, or complications that make it impossible for an organization to get better. A successful

business analyst has the capability of handling lots of information, has great communication

skills, and is a good planner (Bolten, 2020). Business analysis is a key skill that should be

developed by anyone working within an organization. In the coming years, I am expecting to

develop key analytical skills that will help me understand how to grow a business and

understand the market. It is important for anyone who runs a business to know what is going

on in his or her organization. A business analyst needs to look at data, measure metrics, and

make the right decisions that will lead the business to success (Schartel Dunn et al., 2021).

An effective business analyst should be able to analyze the key performance indicators of an

organization and determine whether strategies have been effective in meeting specific goals.
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It is also important to regularly compare the performance results of an organization against

the corresponding industry benchmarks (Tripathy et al., 2018).

Conclusion

Over the course of the assignment, I realized that in order to be an effective business person,

we must always be open-minded to new ideas and make sure to work with people because

they are qualified in what they do and not just because of who they are. To achieve this kind

of professionalism, we must develop the right values and have rational decision-making

skills. This assignment has helped me with business writing and presentation skills. As a

student from a non-business background, I was often lacking in confidence and clarity

regarding these types of tasks.

References

Verčič, A.T., 2021. The impact of employee engagement, organisational support and

employer branding on internal communication satisfaction. Public Relations Review,

47(1), p.102009.

Guffey, M.E. and Loewy, D., 2021. Business communication: Process & product. Cengage

Learning.

Coffelt, T.A., Baker, M.J. and Corey, R.C., 2016. Business communication practices from

employers’ perspectives. Business and Professional Communication Quarterly, 79(3),

pp.300-316.

Ali, B.J., Anwar, G., Gardi, B., Jabbar Othman, B., Mahmood Aziz, H., Ali Ahmed, S.,

Abdalla Hamza, P., Burhan Ismael, N., Sorguli, S. and Sabir, B.Y., 2021. Business

communication strategies: analysis of internal communication processes. Ali, BJ,

Anwar, G., Gardi, B., Othman, BJ, Aziz, HM, Ahmed, SA, Hamza, PA, Ismael, NB,

Sorguli, S., Sabir, BY (2021). Business Communication Strategies: Analysis of

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Internal Communication Processes. Journal of Humanities and Education

Development, 3(3), pp.16-38.

Bolten, J., 2020. Intercultural business communication: An interactive approach (pp. 139-

155). Routledge.

Schartel Dunn, S., Dawson, M. and Block, B., 2021. Teaching teamwork in the business

school. Journal of Education for Business, 96(6), pp.381-386.

Tripathy, M., 2018. Building quality teamwork to achieve excellence in business

organizations. International research journal of management, IT and social sciences,

5(3), pp.1-7.
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