FINAL REQUIREMENT: Journal Review and

Case Study
SMALL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

Submitted by:

HANS GABRIEL F. ATANACIO

Saint Louis University, School of Accountancy and

Business Management Graduate Program

Date of Submission: DECEMBER 12, 2017

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS............................................................................................ 2
JOURNAL REVIEW AND CRITIQUE ....................................................................... 4
I. Impact of Social Media Applications on Small Business Entrepreneurs ................. 5
II. Matters Arising from SMES E-Commerce Adoption: Global Perspective .............. 6
CASE STUDY ......................................................................................................... 7
I. Big Companies and New Ideas................................................................................... 8
1. Why is innovation important to each of these companies? .......................... 8
2. How do they link creativity and innovation with market opportunities? ....... 8
3. What are the lessons for a startup business?.................................................... 8
II. Barbie and Mattel Corporation .................................................................................. 9
1. Why has Barbie been so successful? ................................................................ 9
2. Barbie is hardly a high-tech product, but has Mattel been innovative in
how it has developed the product and extended its lifecycle? .......................... 9
3. What are the lessons for product innovation? ................................................. 9
III. Biolife LLC .................................................................................................................... 10
1. Chapter 3 discusses three types of startup ideas: Type A, Type B, and Type
C. Which of these is illustrated by Biolife’s startup based on its QR product? ... 10
2. Most new business ideas come from personal experience, hobbies,
accidental discoveries, or a deliberate search. From which of these sources
did the idea for Biolife’s launch come? ................................................................ 10
3. Considering what you have learned about this startup and its
development, would you say that the founders followed more of an outside-in
or an inside-out approach to identify his business opportunity and launch the
company? Explain your answer............................................................................. 10
4. Conduct a SWOT analysis of the company. What do you think are Biolife’s
most significant strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats? ................. 11
5. How would you characterize the strategy that Biolife is following? Is it a
cost-based or differentiation-based strategy? Or is it focus strategy centered
on one of these two fundamental strategies? Be sure to identify the facts or
assumptions on which you based your conclusion ............................................. 11
IV. Nin Castle, Phoebe Emerson and Goodone ........................................................ 12
1. What do you think might be Nin’s personal objectives in running this
business? .................................................................................................................. 12
2. Is this a social enterprise or just a socially ethical business?.......................... 12
3. Is Goodone successful? How do you measure this? ..................................... 12
4. What does money measure in this business? ................................................. 12
5. Is it right that Nin should be able to make so much use of grants and
support? ................................................................................................................... 13
V. Sunny Day Designs Inc. ............................................................................................. 14

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 1. What is the primary force that motivated Hwang to internationalize? Did
he make a good decision when he located his manufacturing facility in
China? What other countries should have been considered? Why? ................ 14
2. What strategy option did Hwang select for his China-based enterprise? Did
he select the right strategy? .................................................................................. 14
3. Given the details of the case and the key facts about China, assess the
opportunities for US firms in China. What features of the country should be
particularly attractive to small businesses seeking to expand internationally? . 14
4. What challenges to doing business in China did Hwang experience? Given
the key facts about China, list issues that may present distinct problems for
small US firms doing business there. ....................................................................... 15
VI. Gibson Mortuary ........................................................................................................ 16
1. Evaluate the human resource problems facing this firm. Which appear
most serious? ........................................................................................................... 16
2. How can Gibson Mortuary be more aggressive in recruitment? How can it
make itself more attractive to prospective employees? .................................... 16
3. Does the fact that Gibson Mortuary is a family firm create a significant
problem in recruitment? How can the firm overcome any problems that may
exist in this area? ..................................................................................................... 16
4. Assuming that you are the proper age to consider employment with
Gibson Mortuary, what is the biggest question or problem you would have as a
prospective employee? What, if anything, might the Gibson do to deal with
that type of question or problem? ........................................................................ 17
VII. Lourdes “Chingling” Tanco, MIDA Trade Ventures, Inc. ..................................... 18
1. How has Chingling used her education and prior work experience to
support the success of MIDA?................................................................................ 18
2. MIDA is based in the Philippines, a country that is a member of a Regional
Trade Agreement (RTA). Which RTA is it? How might this affect the business
dealings of the company ....................................................................................... 18
3. What are MIDA’s marketing advantages ...................................................... 18
4. MIDA has a commitment to ensure that international sanitation standards
are followed and the processing plants comply with environmental and social
responsibility issues. How is this accomplished and what issues are specified? 19
VIII. Producing Quality Parts: Small Parts Manufacturing .......................................... 20
1. How has SPM brought modern technology to the traditional processes of
machining custom parts?....................................................................................... 20
2. What is the source of production inputs for SPM? ......................................... 20
3. How does SPM assure quality? Do you agree that they chose the right type
quality assurance? Why or why not? .................................................................... 20
4. What types of regulations are particularly important to SPM and its
employees, given the nature of the business? ..................................................... 20
REFERENCES: ...................................................................................................... 21

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JOURNAL REVIEW AND CRITIQUE

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I. Impact of Social Media Applications on Small
Business Entrepreneurs

SUMMARY The aim of the study is to take a look at the impact of

social media applications on small business owners.
The researchers studied the motivational effect of
these applications on small business entrepreneur. The
reason behind the study is the fact that social media
platforms have become the advertising and publicity
tool of small businesses. The study then found out that
indeed, the social media platforms create a positive
impact and motivation on small business owners.
EVALUATION The study is very timely and relevant. It was able to
give a clearer picture on how things in the business
world evolve together with the recent technological
advancement. The researchers did a great job on
explaining how the attitude of small business
entrepreneurs towards social media affected the way
they conduct they marketing strategies.
WEAK AND Strong points:
STRONG POINTS  The article is very relevant and timely
 The findings can be very useful for the intended
audience
 Informative

Weak points:
 The study lacks supporting data
 Based mostly on laws and theory
 No sample size for the intended population
CONCLUSION The authors of this paper then concluded, upon the
execution of the study, that social media platforms
form the most effective way of advertising and
publicity for small business entrepreneurs. According to
the study, these platforms provide the owners
motivation to use it and positive impact to their
business because of minimal expense and range of
scope.

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II. Matters Arising from SMEs E-Commerce Adoption:
Global Perspective

SUMMARY This paper entitled “Matters Arising from SMEs E-

Commerce Adoption: Global Perspective” talks about
the acceptance and subsequent use of E-Commerce
by SMEs and the challenges that prevent other global
enterprises to do the same. It says that a lot of
businesses around the globe take advantage of it.
However, the same does not hold true for other
countries, especially in the Africa region. The intention
of this study is to find out the matters revolving around
this issue.
EVALUATION The intention of the paper is unique. While others seeks
to understand the impact of social media on how
business marketing is conducted, this paper wants to
identify the adoption factors in SMEs and why other fail
to make a realization out of it. There are numerous
studies that come to explain the positive impact of e-
commerce in entrepreneurship. I find this paper
unique because it seeks to find an answer on why
others don’t use it.
WEAK AND Strong points:
STRONG POINTS  The objective of the article is unique and very
informative
 It gives a different perspective on the role of e-
commerce in entrepreneurship
 The paper seems to be of much use for future
researches

Weak point:
 The scope could have been broader
CONCLUSION The researchers found out that the main hindrances
on why other countries, especially those
underdeveloped ones, are the lack of resources,
physical infrastructure, and financial capabilities.
Because of these findings, experts can now formulate
a solution to the address the problem at hand.

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CASE STUDY

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I. Big Companies and New Ideas

1. Why is innovation important to each of these companies?

According to business dictionary, innovation is “the process of

translating an idea or invention into a good or service that creates value
or for which customers will pay”. It also states that in order to be called an
innovation, “an idea must be replicable at an economical cost and must
satisfy a specific need”. Therefore, we can say that innovation is critical to
the survival of a business and sustenance of its competitiveness.

Innovation should be a part of every company’s initiatives in order to

remain productive and relevant. This fact does not exempt big
companies such as Lego, LG, and Hallmark. In fact, we can attribute the
continuing success of these companies to their ability to innovate. This is
why innovation is important to each of these companies.

2. How do they link creativity and innovation with market

opportunities?

Innovation involves understanding how to connect new products or

services with the evolving need of the consumers. It involves riding the
trend and adapting to the demands of the market. In order to realize
these, companies should be able to think creatively especially when it
comes to how’s and why’s of the process. This opens up market
opportunities to such companies, which then lead to further growth and
expansion.

3. What are the lessons for a startup business?

I think the message of this study revolves around the idea of innovation
as a tool for survival. A lot of startup businesses have good ideas and start
off pretty well. However, many of these businesses fail to adapt to the
changes in the consumer demands, which leads to their fall.

The business world is all about the changes on people’s perception and
preferences. Many successful business continue to thrive because they
innovate ways on how to address these changes. This is the challenge to
small and medium enterprises and must always be taken into account in
order to survive the competitive market.

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II. Barbie and Mattel Corporation

1. Why has Barbie been so successful?

As stated in the article, “the answer lies in innovative marketing and

product extension”. The Mattel Corporation, parent company of Barbie,
went beyond being innovative and successfully became more than just a
doll. It successful became a way of living for its consumers. The secret
behind their success is their ability to mold their products into something
that people see as trendy or something that suits their taste and demand
of the market.

2. Barbie is hardly a high-tech product, but has Mattel been innovative

in how it has developed the product and extended its lifecycle?

The short answer is yes; Mattel has been innovative in how it has
developed their product. Innovation doesn’t always pertain to being
high-tech. There are numerous kinds of innovation and technological
advancement is just one of them. For the case of Mattel, they were able
to find innovative ways on how to remain relevant to consumers by
catering to the trends, wants, and demands of the market.

3. What are the lessons for product innovation?

Product innovation really boils down to one thing: creating a value for
which customers will pay for. Entrepreneurs should be able to realize that
the world of business is all bout change. Businesses should adapt to these
changes in order to survive and doing so requires creativity to say the
least.

Nowadays, a lot of startup businesses fail to thrive because they also

fail to innovate. They start out very good and then end up closing soon
because they cannot keep up with the changes in the market. Innovation
can help entrepreneurs overcome this dilemma. This is how important
innovation is and the mere reason why it should always be a priority of
every businessman.

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III. Biolife LLC

1. Chapter 3 discusses three types of startup ideas: Type A, Type B,

and Type C. Which of these is illustrated by Biolife’s startup based on
its QR product?

Of the three types of startup ideas, Biolife’s startup falls under Type B,
which revolves around the idea of providing customers with a new
product through a new technology. This is due to the fact that Biolife’s
Quick Relief (QR) product bank on their ability to provide the market a
unique product with a unique feature.

2. Most new business ideas come from personal experience, hobbies,

accidental discoveries, or a deliberate search. From which of these
sources did the idea for Biolife’s launch come?

According to the story of Biolife’s founders Jim Patterson and John Alf
Thompson, they were originally on their journey towards discovering a new
way to purify water. However, Patterson accidentally pricked his finger
and this coincidence led them to discover Quick Relief. Therefore, it is safe
to say that their source of business idea came from accidental discovery.

3. Considering what you have learned about this startup and its
development, would you say that the founders followed more of an
outside-in or an inside-out approach to identify his business
opportunity and launch the company? Explain your answer.

The business idea of Biolife came from an accidental discovery. Being

such, I believe the company used an inside-out approach to identify their
business opportunity because they started working and improving on their
product before coming out to the market. Inside-out approach involves
evaluating your own capabilities and offering your services to the market.
I believe this is how Biolife went through as they build they business idea
into a working one.

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 4. Conduct a SWOT analysis of the company. What do you think are
Biolife’s most significant strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and
threats?

Strengths
(Internal, Positive)
 Patented Technology: The
founders were able to discover a
patented combination of resin
and salt, giving them the edge of
exclusivity for a period of time
 Brand Power: The product is
already known and widely used
by professional athletes and
trainers
Opportunities
(External, Positive)
 New Market: The product has
the opportunity to become a
household product consumed by
the general public
 ISO Certification: This can help
to further establish the brand
Weaknesses
(Internal, Negative)
 Competitive Market:
Competition includes household
items like Band-Aid, which is
already an established brand
 Limited Products: The company
has a limited variety of products
to offer
Threats
(External, Negative)
 Risk of Entering New Markets:
Limited knowledge regarding a
new market can prove to be a
threat to the company
 Financial Restrictions: Lack of
resources can impede the growth
of the company

5. How would you characterize the strategy that Biolife is following? Is

it a cost-based or differentiation-based strategy? Or is it focus
strategy centered on one of these two fundamental strategies? Be
sure to identify the facts or assumptions on which you based your
conclusion

Biolife’s QR product was born through a new technology, which is

unique to the company. The business was also granted a patent that
gives them the advantage of exclusivity. Therefore, I believe that the
strategy of Biolife is characterized as differentiated-based, as it
emphasizes the uniqueness of the firm’s product. As of now, the focus on
a niche market, which happens to be professional sports athletes but in
order to expand, they need to penetrate the market of the general
public.

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IV. Nin Castle, Phoebe Emerson and Goodone

1. What do you think might be Nin’s personal objectives in running this

business?

Based on how the company was formed, I believe that Nin’s personal
objectives in running this business are to make an impact on the huge
fashion industry by making it greener in a sense and change the
perceptions of what recycled clothing can be by creating garments
which doesn’t look like recycled.

2. Is this a social enterprise or just a socially ethical business?

The Goodone company is considered as both social enterprise and

socially ethical business. It is a social enterprise because it is locally
sourced and therefore provide livelihood to the society. It is also a socially
ethical business because it revolves around the idea of providing locals
some support by mere operating and takes note of sustainable growth
and development of the triple bottom line (Profit, People, Planet).

3. Is Goodone successful? How do you measure this?

Success is measured by how the goals of the business are achieved

and if these goals are met. Goodone is successful simply because they
were able to consider the triple bottom line of responsible
entrepreneurship. They expanded internationally and met their investment
goals while creating a sustainable development for the society and for
the planet.

4. What does money measure in this business?

Money is essential to every business, and Goodone is not exempted to

this fact. Even though the primary goal of the founders is create a positive
change, attaining such goal wouldn’t be possible without financial
growth. This emphasizes the great importance of money even in social
enterprises.

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5. Is it right that Nin should be able to make so much use of grants and
support?

The short answer is yes. If there are companies that deserve to have
grants and support then I think Goodone is one of them. I believe that
supporting companies with such objectives will create a larger positive
impact on the society.

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V. Sunny Day Designs Inc.

1. What is the primary force that motivated Hwang to internationalize?

Did he make a good decision when he located his manufacturing
facility in China? What other countries should have been
considered? Why?

The main driving force that motivated Hwang to internationalize is cost

reduction. As he stated, China is one of the best places for his business
because of cheap labor, materials, and other costs. If this was he was
looking for, then he also should have considered other countries with
cheap labor such as the Philippines, Thailand, and such.

2. What strategy option did Hwang select for his China-based

enterprise? Did he select the right strategy?

Hwang recognized the weak points of having to put up a business in

China. One is the fact that products produced in China don’t meet their
standards. What he did to address this is to train and hire his own people
to do the work. However, that created another problem. His move
created a tension between his company and Chinese officials, who
wanted to have foreign companies hire Chinese locals to boost
employment.

3. Given the details of the case and the key facts about China, assess
the opportunities for US firms in China. What features of the country
should be particularly attractive to small businesses seeking to
expand internationally?

Bringing the business offshore to China opens a lot of opportunities to

big businesses. The biggest of which is the opportunity to greatly lessen the
cost and expenses of the company operations. It is the very reason why
China remains to be the most attractive destination of choice for
investors. However, such advantage does come without consequences.
As the saying goes, “you get what you pay for”.

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 4. What challenges to doing business in China did Hwang experience?
Given the key facts about China, list issues that may present distinct
problems for small US firms doing business there.

Most of the challenges Hwang experienced have something to do

with difference in culture and expectations. The government officials of
China hold most of the properties, which makes their intentions different
from that of a businessman’s. This makes it tougher for Hwang to
negotiate and come into terms with his Chinese partners. Communication
also served as a barrier in their talks.

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VI. Gibson Mortuary

1. Evaluate the human resource problems facing this firm. Which

appear most serious?

When it comes to human resource problems, the persistent ones that

bugged the family business over the years are recruitment and retention
of qualified personnel. The problem lies mainly on the image of the
industry. Most people do not want to work in such field because of the
nature of work and the idea of facing death everyday. This imposes a
huge dilemma on the growth of the business since the industry heavily
relies on manpower.

2. How can Gibson Mortuary be more aggressive in recruitment? How

can it make itself more attractive to prospective employees?

One thing that can help Gibson Mortuary recruit employees is to start the
pitching process at a very early stage. To do this,, the business can start an
apprenticeship program that aims to train and develop young people
into becoming a mortuary employee. The recruitment process should start
prior to any college training in order to entice people and make them
interested in the field.

3. Does the fact that Gibson Mortuary is a family firm create a

significant problem in recruitment? How can the firm overcome any
problems that may exist in this area?

I believe Gibson Mortuary being a family firm has little to no effect to

their recruitment problems. I think they just need to create a well-defined
recruitment program that will help create an interest to the business
among younger generation so that the growth of the business will not be
in peril. They can also try improving the compensation and benefits they
offer to their prospect recruits.

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 4. Assuming that you are the proper age to consider employment with
Gibson Mortuary, what is the biggest question or problem you would
have as a prospective employee? What, if anything, might the
Gibson do to deal with that type of question or problem?

Personally, the biggest issue for me if I were to consider employment

with Gibson Mortuary, just like any other applicant for the said job, is the
nature of the work. The work requires too much skills and expertise, not to
mention the things I have to deal with as an employee. If they were going
to pitch for my services then they have to offer better compensation and
benefits in order to offset the downs and the negatives of the field.

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VII. Lourdes “Chingling” Tanco, MIDA Trade Ventures,
Inc.

1. How has Chingling used her education and prior work experience
to support the success of MIDA?

Chingling got her Economics degree from Bryn Mawr College in

Pennsylvania. Her education gave her the opportunity to work for a
business, which subsequently led her to the industry MIDA is currently in.
She used everything she learned from her education and prior work
experience in order to come up with an idea known today as MIDA Trade
Ventures, Inc. and MIDA Food Distributors, Inc.

2. MIDA is based in the Philippines, a country that is a member of a

Regional Trade Agreement (RTA). Which RTA is it? How might this
affect the business dealings of the company

The Regional Trade Agreement where the Philippines is a member of is

the ASEAN FTA (Association of Southeast Asian Nations Free Trade
Agreement). This agreement between ASEAN country members allowed
MIDA, a Philippine-based company, to conduct business dealings with
Indonesia, a co-member of the association. It allowed MIDA to get
resources from the said country during the turmoil here in the Philippines.

3. What are MIDA’s marketing advantages

MIDA becoming ConAgra and Singleton Seafood’s global buyer and

the former’s ability to provide consistent excellent service, from beginning
to end, gave them the leverage to acquire several business dealings and
subsequent growth. Also, MIDA recognizes that knowing its clients means
understanding their laws and culture, as well as their product needs and
expectations. This enabled the company to get a good grasp on what
the market demands so that they can prepare their offer to them.

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 4. MIDA has a commitment to ensure that international sanitation
standards are followed and the processing plants comply with
environmental and social responsibility issues. How is this
accomplished and what issues are specified?

The environmental issues specified include proper waste disposal,

mangrove destruction/replanting, and practicing sustainable aquaculture
practices. On the other hand, social responsibilities such as preventing
child labor, and meeting minimum wage standards also concern the
company. According to the article, MIDA regularly inspects processing
plants to assess how well its suppliers are complying to these standards.

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VIII. Producing Quality Parts: Small Parts Manufacturing

1. How has SPM brought modern technology to the traditional

processes of machining custom parts?

Although the company still makes use of traditional machinery such as

screw machines, bench grinders, drill presses, and turret lathes, they also
employ computer-controlled facturing, which they house in a climate-
controlled room as a way of modernization.

2. What is the source of production inputs for SPM?

SPM heavily relies on its workforce and machinery in order to convert its
inputs into outputs. Its staff includes skilled toll makers, machinists, and
computer technicians. Their raw materials include low-carbon, alloy, or
stainless steel, brass, aluminum, plastics, and exotic metals.

3. How does SPM assure quality? Do you agree that they chose the
right type quality assurance? Why or why not?

One example of the company’s quality assurance process is its use of

Statistical Process Control. The company also uses a machine, a Gage-
Master optical comparator with digital readout. I believe they picked the
right type of quality assurance as evidenced by their ISO certification.

4. What types of regulations are particularly important to SPM and its

employees, given the nature of the business?

Given the nature of the business, the types of regulations that are
particularly important to SPM are labor regulations and environmental
regulations. SPM provides blue-collar jobs and more often than not,
workers belonging to this industry are often subjected to harsh conditions
and low wages. On the other hand, environment remains to be of top
issue with regards to industries that manufacture metals and other
potential environmental hazards.

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REFERENCES:
 https://www.acceleration.biz/our-
thinking/transformation/impact-technology-upon-business-
part-1/

 http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/innovation.h
tml

 http://www.gfk.com/master/solutions/market-
opportunities-and-innovation/

 https://www.inc.com/guides/2010/07/how-to-finance-
your-business.html

 https://www.villanovau.com/resources/hr/human-
resource-management-challenges/#.Wi0VOLT1XaI

 Polak, M., Wojdyga, L., (2013), “Problems and Challenges

in Implementing Internationalization Strategy”, IRIS Kick-off
Meeting Workshop, February 2013

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