Forming an Opportunity Belief

I believe that an opportunity is available to improve road safety when it comes to signaling lane changes. Throughout various driving interactions, it’s crazy to see the number of drivers who change lanes without signaling. An opportunity exists to improve road safety by mandating automotive manufacturers to implement improved standard driver safety technology that abides by a new federal regulation. The mandate will force automotive companies to implement software that alerts the driver that they made an unsafe lane change which in turn coach the driver to start using their turn signal. Implementing this technology will significantly reduce the amount auto accidents that are caused by a driver who fails to signal where they are going. The target audience that has the need for this opportunity are the people who currently hold valid driver’s licenses and current student drivers. As previously stated, this need comes from the number of auto accidents caused by failure to use turn signals. The need is being met now currently by a lot of auto manufacturers implementing blind spot monitoring technology in cars to warn drivers of people in their blind spot. I 90% sure that this opportunity exists

 

Iteration 1

I interviewed a student, Frankie, who currently holds a valid driver’s license and uses a scooter to complete his daily commute. I explained the opportunity to him and he agrees that the problem exists and poses huge safety concerns for people like him who only have a helmet as protection while he is traveling on the road. In response to the opportunity, he disagreed that mandating the software will be effective in reducing the number of drivers who change lanes improperly. He brought up a valid point that if there was an emergency situation, the technology would be ineffective. Instead, he believes drivers should just simply pay attention to the road.

 

Iteration 2

I interviewed another student, Matthieu, who also holds a valid driver’s license. His initial response to the problem is that it is an irresponsible driving practice. He agreed that that opportunity will be a viable solution to the problem he attributes the implementation of this technology to improve the safety of the road. Matthieu claims the need exists because the current situation of not using turn signals make the road unsafe. He does not like how irresponsible drivers can be when it comes to driving. He feels as though this opportunity will be especially crucial to new drivers and senior driver who may not be as alert as the middle demographic of drivers.

 

Iteration 3

I Interviewed a third student, Ayinde, who also has a valid drivers license. He likes the potential of the opportunity but provided various points of improvement for the opportunity. He did agree that it is a problem that drivers do not use their turn signals. He also pointed out that the technology may not be smart enough to distinguish normal driving situation that would make the technology useless. He stated that a simple driving situation of turning a corner could render this technology useless. He stated that possibly more thought can be implemented into finding an opportunity to fix this problem.

Reflection:

During the first interview, I was taken back a little to find out that someone didn’t agree with my opportunity. I thought this would be something that would be revolutionary and everyone would want to be a part of it. I learned that this opportunity had many faults and would need to be thought through so more before it could have the potential to be implemented.

 

The second interview, I felt a little better because the interviewee agreed to my point of view and saw the same potential in the idea as I did. The interviewee provides ways to improve it as well but they were the same as the points from interviewee # 1.

 

The third interview was similar to the first one but this person completely threw out my idea. The interviewee provided sensible reasons as to why it would not work that I had not thought about such as the technology not being able to distinguish certain driving conditions which will make the technology useless.

 

Summary:

Based off of the three interviews, I believe the opportunity still exists. There are some aspects that will need to be reworked but I do still see the opportunity being a viable solution to the problem. I do believe the opportunity is more accurate because I was able to confirm with the interviewers that the problem is there and the presented opportunity can eliminate that problem. Customer feedback is important for entrepreneurs because it allows them to see stuff they may have overlooked. This will allow full satisfaction of customers because we will tend to their needs and wants.

#Assignment 4

Identifying local Opportunities

Identifying Local Opportunities

 

1. Prison promises tasty treat if inmates give cash to charity. Where’s the pizza?

http://infoweb.newsbank.com/resources/doc/nb/news/169AE3B8597E0BF8?p=WORLDNEWS

• This article discusses a program that a women’s prison implemented to encourage the family of the prisoners to invest in a local charity. If the family members donated, they would be provided with pizza, ice cream, and a gourmet meal.
• The problem in the article is that the prison could be taking money from potentially unwilling donors
• The party that has the problem is Rep. David Richardson, a forensic auditor who has conducted investigations of Florida’s prison system.

2. Before son’s gruesome crime, she turned to state’s mental health system. It didn’t help

http://infoweb.newsbank.com/resources/doc/nb/news/169ACF0976455B38?p=WORLDNEWS

• This article discusses a situation where a mother has to deal with a son who has a drug addiction and has severe schizophrenia. He had many episodes that has caused the destruction of his family
• The article states the problem is that low-income areas do not have the resources to help with situations such as the one for Della Wright, the mother of the schizophrenic.
• The person who has the problem is the mother because she can only obtain the resources that she has access to with the respect to her current living and financial situation.

3. During tax season, you’re at greater risk of identity theft

http://infoweb.newsbank.com/resources/doc/nb/news/169A8F5865628E80?p=WORLDNEWS

• This article discusses the greater risk of identity theft during tax season because there are “walkers” who follow mail carriers and steal their mail that contains critical information regarding peoples personal tax situations
• The problem in this article is that peoples identity information is not protected when tax season comes around because it is easily available to thieves
• The party that has the problem is everyone who will have their tax information mailed to them. It is suggested that people get locked mailboxes so this information is protected

4. A Florida county will shut its schools after flu outbreak hits teachers and students

http://infoweb.newsbank.com/resources/doc/nb/news/169AABB4946AE208?p=WORLDNEWS

 

• The article discusses an unexpected outbreak of the flu in a Florida school district. Schools in north Florida had to shut their doors for the remainder of the week because upwards of 20% of the school population had to call out sick each day of the week
• The problem in the article is that the school was running out resources such as teachers and bus drivers due to the outbreak of the flu. Proper sanitary method was probably not being utilized
• The parties who have the problem are the parents and administrators of the students. They are the ones who have to deal with the offset of problems associated with the flu outbreak.

5. Big road beams are going up —so highway traffic will shut down on 836

http://infoweb.newsbank.com/resources/doc/nb/news/169A8F58A09D80A8?p=WORLDNEWS

• The article discusses road closures and increased traffic due to the expansion of the 836 highway to allow better traffic to the Miami international highway
• The problem is that it will increase traffic in many areas around this construction and will cause confusion for drivers who are not aware of the new traffic delays and detours.
• The party that has this problem are commuters who rely on this highway to get to work every day. They will most likely have to adjust their commute schedule or find alternate routes.

Assignment 5

Bug List

Bug List

1. I do not like when people change lanes without using their turn signals

– This problem most likely exists because people assume that if the lane is clear, they don’t have to use it

2. I do not like that all cars do not come with automatic lights because it causes people to drive at night with their lights off

– This problem most likely exists because their cars do not notify them that their lights off

3. I do not like when I go to Walmart and they have over 20 lanes but only have 3 open for checkout

– This problem most likely exists because the store does not have enough workers to perform the operations

4. I do not like people drive consistently in the passing lane on the interstate

– This problem most likely exists because people do not know the road rules

5. I do not like when people loudly chew their food

–  This problem probably exists because those individuals probably did not receive proper etiquette lessons

6. I do not like when people don’t say thank you after you hold the door for them

– This problem most likely exists because individuals think that its common courtesy

7. I do not like when people don’t clear the numbers of the microwave

– This problem most likely exists because individuals food are finished heating up before the time they set.

8. I do not like when people leave cabinets open in the kitchen

– This problem most likely exists because the hinges do not swing freely and stop the cabinets before its in its closed position

9. I don’t like when people leave the bathroom without washing their hands

– This problem most likely exists because the person might be in a rush

10. I do not like when people merge into my lane and drive slow

– This problem most likely exists because they probably do not know the proper road rules

11. I do not like when people do not let you into a lane when you properly signal to get over

– This problem most likely exists because they do not see the other driver trying to get over or is focused on the road ahead of them

12. I do not like when people park over the lines in parking lots

– This problem most likely exists because they don’t see the lines once they are in the space

13. I do not like when McDonalds ice cream machine is constantly broken

– This problem most likely exists because the machine is overworked which causes it to break

14. I do not like when people do not flush the toilet in the public restroom

– This problem most likely exists because people are probably in a rush to go somewhere.

15. I do not like when people drive their cars with warning lights on

– This problem most likely exists because the person does not have time to resolve the issue with their car

16. I do not like when people drive without their seatbelt on

– This problem most likely exists because it is uncomfortable to wear while driving

17. I do not like when metal forks rub against glass

– This problem most likely exists because when people eat, they hit scrape the fork across the plate because they are really hungry

18. I do not like when people leave the lights on when they leave the room

– – This problem most likely exists because they are in a rush to get out the room

19. I do not like when the kitchen sponge is not squeezed out after being used

– This problem most likely exists because someone the person washing dishes forgets to squeeze it out

20. I do not like when people leave their gas tank door open.

– This problem most likely exists because the person is in a rush and forgets to close the tank.

 

Reflection:

The bug list was easy to come up with until I got to the last three. I really had to think hard about what things really bug aside from the ones I already mentioned. I realized most of them related to driving and I was trying to stem away from that.

#Assignment 2

My Story

Growing up, I did not necessarily have access to everything that I wanted. I grew up in a single parent household with six other siblings and a mother who did her best to make ends meet. Lets just say that I wasn’t the kid that always had any of the latest things growing up. At some point, I wanted to change that. My radical young mind thought of different ways to try to earn money so that I could get the finer things in life. That’s when I came up with the bright idea to create my own snack business. It came to my attention that many students in my high school were craving the snacks that were taken away from the Michelle Obama “Let’s Move” campaign. So I decided to provide the students with those snacks. I strategically planned when other student organizations would sell their fundraising snacks and I would go out and buy the same snacks so that I could sell them. I did this for all four years of my high school.

 

I enrolled in ENT3003 because I wanted to learn how I can provide for myself without having to work for somebody. I want to learn the different ways to become successful without working a standard 9-5 job. The learning outcome that I hope to get out of this class is to learn how to foster my creativity to help change the world.

#Assignment 1

Test Post

Hello All,

My name is Malik Davis-Pittman and I am in ENT3003.