13A – Reading Reflection No. 1

1) Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald’s, Ray Kroc
  • What surprised you the most?
    • I didn't know anything about Ray Kroc before this book, but I was most surprised at how quickly he blew up- going from a very average salesmen to a franchising giant!
  • What about the entrepreneur did you most admire?
    • His hard work. He refused to give up!
  • What about the entrepreneur did you least admire?
    • I least admire some of the "dominant" or "aggressive" tactics that he used. I read up more on Kroc after finishing his autobiography, and he has received some criticism for not giving the original MacDonald brothers more credit.
  • Did the entrepreneur encounter adversity and failure? If so, what did they do about it?
    • Yes. First, he worked hard until he had the opportunity to work on something that had the potential to blow up (McDonald's). Then, he built out a highly skilled team around him!
2) What competencies did you notice that the entrepreneur exhibited? 
  • Insight- with out his perception of McDonalds value to consumers, and the value of their efficient operating system, he would not have been successful.

3) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.
  • There isn't really anything confusing in the book, but it is surprising that Ray Kroc went through all the efforts that he did at his age. He wasn't ready to throw in the towel!

4) If you were able to ask two questions to the entrepreneur, what would you ask? Why?
  • I would ask him how he would approach hiring in 2020. Hiring low wage employees is becoming increasingly difficult as the labor market tightens.
  • I would ask if the "efficiency model", valuing cost above all else, is broken.

5) For fun: what do you think the entrepreneur's opinion was of hard work? Do you share that opinion?
  • Ray Kroc's opinion is basically, "Do what you have to in order to get the job done". I agree with this, as long as you are able to act ethically.


Comments

  1. Oph06March 8, 2020 at 6:33 PM

    After reading Mary Kay and reading your summary, I believe we were assigned these specific entrepreneurs not only for their success story, but because of their innovative thought processes. McDonald’s is the fast food powerhouse which would not have happened without Ray Kroc’s innovation and drive especially at his age. I would also wonder if this model would work now with yearly increases in minimum wage.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

29A – Venture Concept No. 2

Image
1) Venture Concept Opportunity America, and the world, has an aging population. As birth rates in the U.S. decline, we are edging closer and closer to an economy with characteristics similar to countries like Japan, where the average age is 47. In the U.S., the average age is approximately 38, but that ticks higher every year. As our population grows gradually lower, our economy undergoes fundamental changes. We can look at Japan for an example of this sort of change. As the number of retirees rises and the number of workers falls, to things happen. First, selling pressure from retirees keeps stocks lower. Moreover, the country as a whole becomes less productive, as a smaller and smaller portion of the country support the remaining population. How has this worked out in Japan? Very similar to what is described above- Japan’s stock market has been stagnant for decades, the value of their currency has declined and their status on the world stage has shrunk. How does this apply to pe...
Read more

21A – Reading Reflection No. 2

Reading: How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still win Big  by Scott Adams 1) What was the general theme or argument of the book?  The general theme is to not think of failure as failure, but to see it as a learning opportunity. As cliche as that sounds, Scott Adam's brings depth to the discussion by emphasizing how we need to recognize failure as an essential rung on the ladder to eventual success. 2) How did the book, in your opinion, connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT 3003? Many people have misconceptions about what an entrepreneur is, and what you need to do to become an entrepreneur. Similarly, Scott Adams addresses many of the misconceptions associated with success, and what it takes to achieve success. 3) If you had to design an exercise for this class, based on the book you read, what would that exercise involve? I would p robably have students design  a "life model", where people chart out on a straight line a timeline of what they wan...
Read more

6A – Identifying Opportunities in Economic & Regulatory Trends

Aging population will increase demand for long-term senior care Where did you find this? This is something I have been aware of for a while, but I did additional research and confirmed this using data from the U.S. census. What leads you to believe this opportunity might exist? As people age, their needs change, and many need long-term care from a dedicated professional staff. Compounding this effect is the fact that the Baby Boomers and Gen-X had less children (i.e. caretakers) than previous generations, implying that their late-life care will have to be outsourced to professionals. Who do you think is the most likely customer? People 60 and over with access to long-term benefits or sufficient retirement savings. Is the opportunity easy or difficult to exploit? It is fairly difficult, as you have to raise substantial capital to build a senior living facility. Why did you see the opportunity? I worked for a summer with a senior facility, so I have been aware of trends in t...
Read more