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OWN Entrepreneurial Skills Self-Evaluation Box

Ideas evaluation involves assessing many factors, such as: cost, impact, value in social, cultural and economic environment, etc. You need to have clear criteria to select the best idea.

To be a successful entrepreneur you need to be able to recognize an opportunity when you see one. Specifically, you need to be able to identify a problem or gap and come up with an innovative solution.

Which kind of method do you think is the starting point while looking for an
   innovative solution of a gap?

Look for problems which are aplenty in the environment.

People would like to save time and money; this is the starting point.

Start by solving personal problems first.

The opportunity lies in understanding whether others also face a similar problem.

Maria and her husband returned from overseas to look after her ailing father-in-law. That is when she realized the need for personal care. They wanted to use technology to predict that something might be wrong with an elderly person. This made them launch a predictive health care platform using data sensing.  Growing smartphones gave them an opportunity to implement their idea.

Could you identify the process they followed in order to boost their own new business?

Observation skills and keeping an ear to the ground are traits of successful entrepreneurs.

Spotting an opportunity is the only first step but to convert the idea to a business requires good execution skills.

The opportunity should also have sufficient market. If the market has no similar products it will determine whether opportunity becomes a reality.

Business opportunities are like buses. If you miss one, there is always another one.

When you are creative, you find connections between different ideas and use those connections to solve problems. Often these connections happen when you aren’t actively thinking about the problem or task. Something you read or something someone says connects with the problem and you see it in a new way. Being in a different environment or experiencing something for the first time can also create connections that help you view tasks differently.

What is the best way (or one of the best ways) to improve your creativity skills?

Start doing exercise to force you to think about the same thing in different ways

Exploring fiction novels, for example, can introduce you to interesting creative concepts such as complex worlds, storylines, puzzles, and characters

Try recording your thoughts in a journal at the end of each day

If you are listening to a presentation, you could sketch something relevant to what you are hearing

Bringing out your creativity may help you experiment. No matter how unusual an idea might be, a creative person is willing to test it and see if it works. They see failure as an opportunity to learn and improve. To develop this skill, keep working on a problem, adjusting and rethinking your ideas until you find a solution.

Experimenting and trying is one of the best ways to improve creativity and get more chances to create new ideas, so how can you make this process more efficient?

If you have the opportunity, choose to be on a team of people who are not like you

Simply reading is just one way of mental exercise

Adding regular exercise, even if it’s only 20-30 minutes two to three times per week, is one way to be your best self at work

As well as exercising creativity, drawing, or writing down ideas can help you process information

You think you have an original, profitable, and customer-beneficial business idea, but you need to find funding. You need to figure out how to approach investors.

How do you evaluate your business idea before applying for the funding?

I describe my idea and apply for funding because I am sure it is a good idea.

I do market needs and problem research to prove the existence of the relevant problem with statistical – economic or other data and sources.

I discuss with my close friends and after their approval apply for funding.

I do an individual evaluation based on the market needs and problem research and then consult experts.

After brainstorming, you have almost 10 business ideas. You need to evaluate them and submit only one – the most relevant idea – for implementation.

How do you prioritize the ideas and evaluate them and choose the one?

I make a ranking of all ideas according to idea evaluating criteria, since it is critical in making sure I’m working on the right and best idea.

I choose one idea that seems like the best option and will try to implement it.

I evaluate all ideas and find the one which could fully reflect my background, experience, and business plans.

I choose one idea that seems like the easiest option and will try to implement it.

You have a business idea, and you want your business to be environmentally friendly.

What steps do you take during the business start-up phase to ensure this?

I make some initiatives and then advertise them as a move towards sustainability.

I consult experts, search for good examples, and make a strategic plan in which my efforts can certainly make an impact on the environment.

I try to act eco-friendly but postpone taking actions, because business comes first and environment sustainability after.

I plan a small step and do ample research on the subject before plunging into it to achieve all goals in a more organized manner.

At some point during your work, you discover that you have access to sensitive data and other private information of your business partner’s company. You could use this data for your own business development.

How would you act?

I keep this information and do nothing with it.

I carefully avoid going through data and information which I know are confidential and private.

I do not read this information and contact my business partner in order to solve this situation together.

I carefully read everything in order to understand what is really sensitive and what is not.

You have an important task coming up and you are afraid you are not up for the challenge and possibly can fail.

What will you do?

I decide to take this challenge positively and view any mistakes as a learning opportunity.

I decide to skip the task and avoid being embarrassed.

I will seek support from others, try to give or share my task with somebody else.

I will try to look for information and tools to learn more about the task topic and prepare to fulfil it even if it takes me out of my comfort zone.

There is a long-term task ahead to complete, but you are very unmotivated as it requires a lot of administrative work

How will you behave?

I complete this task only because I feel like I have to.

I would break down the long-term task into easily tangible and achievable targets and try to do it step by step.

I will try to find out the main reason of doing this task and what value brings it in general.

I hate administrative work and don’t see the point of it, so I think I would refuse to do it.

You are the responsible person for human resources management and one very important employee has left your company and you have to find a new one

What actions will you take to find a new employee?

First of all, I would look within my company because maybe I already have some person/persons who could be able to fill the position and from there proceed with a selection process. If I don’t find one, I would create a job post on websites and continue with the selection procedure.

I would send out a memo about the empty position within my company, in addition to collecting as many CV’s as possible from candidates that answered different website job postings, then I would analyse all the CV’s, choose the best one and invite the individual for the job.

I would think about what type of person we really need in our company and would prepare a job post about the empty position and post it in particular websites. After receiving CV’s, I would choose a few people to interview and then make my choice.

I would check outside sources of people seeking the job and would accept the first that comes for the interview.

The quality of one employee’s work begins to rapidly decline and other employees
notice it

What do you think is a good solution for this situation?

Before other employees bring me up to speed on the issue, I would speak with the employee to try to understand the cause of the decline

I would not involve myself, until I receive complaints from other employees or clients.

I would create and apply an employees’ work control system which includes monitoring and regular conversations with employees

If other employees bring up the issue, I have to get involved and ask about the decline

After defining my project’s activity plan, costs, and financial needs, I mention that I’m missing some storage space

Which action should I undertake?

I go to see my friends and my grandmother and try to use their basement or garage.

I create a business plan presentation and contact the Chamber of Commerce or Business Creation Club to find possible partners that have available space.

I create a business plan presentation, and contact real-estate companies about potential rental spaces.

I stop my project.

After defining your project costs, your cash-flow needs and break-even point, you mention that your project needs additional funding resources

Which action are you undertaking to find additional financial resources?

I go to see my friends and my grandmother and try to convince them to take part in my business.

I create a business plan presentation and make a schedule with some banks to get a loan.

I create a business plan presentation, register myself on crowdfunding site, look for equity share partners.

I stop my project.

After defining your project costs, your cash-flow needs and your break-even point, you mention that your commercial activity will not make you reach profitability even after 3 years.

Which action are you undertaking to correct this problem?

I stop my project

I adapt my business plan to include additional products/ services and extend possible commercial activities to have more diversification.

I go to the bank and try to get a loan.

I understand that my project needs an additional partnership before starting, so I’m trying to network to find new business partners.

Ready to start your business? You need to choose the right ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) software suite.

How do you proceed to make the right choice?

I make contact with an accounting office and ask for advice on which ERP/ bookkeeping suite I should choose according to my commercial activities

I choose the software my enthusiastic friend told me to use

I build my own financial tables on Excel… Why would I need any ERP software

I do web research and try to compare different software solutions, comparing their functionalities, evolutions, price, and GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) compliance

During the daily running of a company, it is necessary to continually make decisions, and make a decision in accordance with that specific moment

How to reduce the risk of making the wrong decision?

Risk is a part of the decision-making process, so I make the decision that makes sense to me.

It is absolutely mandatory to have all the information first, in order to select the most valuable option to support my decision-making.

Risk is a part of the decision-making process. Therefore, in order to be able to decide and undertake a certain level of risk, I need to have some information. It is possible to replace information with risk: if I skip information, I save time and money while I’m nevertheless assuming a greater risk. On the other hand, I can reduce the risk by gathering additional information.

We learn from our failures! No matter how many decision-making tools we use, it will never be possible to completely eliminate the risk that is part and partial to doing business. What organisations can (and should) do is embrace their ability to learn. If companies develop effective learning systems that enable them to avoid mistakes, by learning from them, they will be well on the way to becoming truly competitive.

When it is necessary to make a decision and take into account the objective and subjective facts that may affect its effectiveness, there are several variables that must be considered in the decision-making process.

How to make the right decision?

The key to a good decision is reflection before action, therefore, the sequence of steps in the above decision-making modelling process must be considered in reverse order. For example, the output (which is the result of the action) must be considered first.

It is possible to learn the process of making good strategic decisions through practiced deciding.

It depends in my own abilities; it is not possible to learn how to make good decision.

Often, because of deep frustrations in facing a difficult problem, one may unfortunately solve it by creating a bigger problem.

To run a business implies management duties: planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. However, leading a business does not always imply managing it, or managing a business does not always mean leading it. On the other side, leading and managing a business can bring conflicting forces which may compromise its performance.

Which weight should leadership and/or management hold in order to ensure the
effective running of your business?

I believe that leading is different from managing, so only one should prevail to lead the business as intended

I employ leadership skills in the same weight and measure as management skills, and it is essential to use them in a balanced way, given the situation in which they are required

I consider that I have the proper and sufficient leadership skills to lead the business and achieve the expected results

Management and leadership are part of my duties and as such require the skills and knowledge of a range of techniques and tools to support the business

Now that you have the company in place you need to manage it, so you have to activate several devices in order to put in your idea in practise and achieve the results.

How do you put the management of the company in motion?

Managing a business means to put into practice the procedures of planning, organising, and controlling

To enable the company to acquire a competitive advantage

I believe that management is all about making decisions and putting them into practice

The management of the company requires specific expertise and should be assigned to another person

You have found a solution to a long-standing problem in your workplace. Moreover, satisfactory rewards are promised to the person who finds the solution, but the solution requires teamwork

How do you communicate with your teammates during problem-solving stages?

I only involve teammates that I trust and am close to

I don’t inform my teammates until I get the result

I share my opinion with the people in my team, evaluate them, and explain everyone’s duties in the team, in detail, and in the report I will write as a result

I state that it is a team effort, but I emphasize that I am at the beginning of the project

The institution you work for creates a new team with people from different departments for a new initiative

What is your attitude towards this team that consists of people you have not worked with before?

I exchange ideas with my teammates in the departments I consider related to mine

In addition to those I am responsible for, I also contribute towards team requests

I analyse the role of everyone in the team and try to contribute to everyone as much as I can.

I only fulfil my own responsibility within the team

The intern who just started to work with you tells you that there is an easier and more useful method than the method you always use for your business

What is your method of doing business?

I try what the intern recommended and give him/her feedback by making comparisons

I try the method suggested by my intern considering that new is always better

I tell the intern that he/she came here to learn and must use the company method

I use my own method but take notes to review later

You took an innovative initiative that you researched well, but the results were negative

What actions will you take?

I deepen my research and consult experts.

I wait for others to try first

I will never go out of the classical methods again

I learn lessons from the right/wrong things I have done by analysing my processes in detail

You brought a good idea to life with the right steps, and everything seems fine. But you are not progressing as fast as you wish you were considering your goals

Which action should you undertake to overcome these challenges?

I try to get ideas by participating in fairs related to my sector

I try harder to use my network much more actively and efficiently

I bring innovative products to the market

I just wait for the right time

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