Elevator Pitch No. 1 (ENT3003 Assignment 10A)

Testing the Hypothesis, Part 2 (ENT3003 Assignment 9A)

Who: After conducting my interviews, I concluded that while there are plenty of people who are fans of sports and want to see the conflict resolved, their intended methods don't align with my opportunity due to a lack of vision or even confidence in collegiate sports one way or another.

What: The need usually starts to differ from mine either on how exactly the players should be paid and by who, and the opportunity in how things should be played out to remedy the situation.

Why: I feel like the cause of the need is unanimous both inside and outside the boundary. The ideas on how to accommodate that need, and who should accommodate it, is where the line is drawn.

Interviewer 1: This person loves collegiate sports and also seemed to love my opportunities. They agreed with my views on the subject and my method on how to get involved and help out with my services, especially the agency service.

Interviewer 2: This person also loves college sports but feels like the NCAA giving student-athletes more than their athletic scholarships is not okay. They believe that it would be more beneficial for the NCAA institutions to be required to spend that money earned on better facilities throughout their entire campus instead of on only the athletic department. They feel like instead of players trying to get compensated nowadays, it should go back to how there was a sense of pride and honor in representing your institution as a student in a recreational sport. Even with a presumed talent level that will be much lower, this person feels like that is the kind of student-athletes that will make college football even more entertaining than the players trying to cash in now, especially considering most of them don't have that much talent to get paid anyway. Those with the talent can find other avenues to get paid for their services if they're not as passionate to simply represent their educational institution in a fun and amateur atmosphere.

Interview 3: This person is quite fond of college sports and also agreed with all of my views and even methods for how to deal with it. However, they feel like the NCAA will provide all of said services, so it would not be beneficial to try to compete with them on this opportunity.

Interview 4: This person loves sports in general and agreed with my methods as possible ways to solve the problem. However, they feel like the decimation of the NCAA has been a long time coming and propose an opportunity of their own, which is actually quite interesting. They feel like the NCAA should cut their losses with prospects of that talent level who have no desire to get an education as well as play sports and just focus on those who are passionate in representing their respective institutions as students first, then athletes, under the athletic scholarships that are provided to them. Conversely, those who do strive to get compensated for their athletic abilities and high talent level, and who doesn't prioritize their education nearly as much, can play in semi-professional leagues instead. This opportunity can also benefit the NCAA as the semi-pro leagues will look to partner with them and use their facilities, broadcasting deals, and/or even their logo on their merchandise to increase the viewership and reputation of the league.

Interview 5: This person apparently watches collegiate sports often, though didn't know much about this issue that has been at the main reason of backlash towards the NCAA for quite some time now. They agreed with my views and was specifically interested in the app opportunity.

Inside the Boundary Outside the Boundary

Who:	NCAA and their institutions	Institutions who don't want student athletes being paid even more
	College athletes	College athletes who don't care much for education
	Collegiate sports fans who still want to see top level athletes compete in college	College sports fans who want to see student-athletes passionate about being both and having fun, not just getting paid
What:	Assist the NCAA and the student-athletes as agents who uphold the new structure	Uphold the current structure and do away with players trying to get more money
	Help the student-athletes determine how much they're worth	Take their talents to an association that will better prepare and compensate them for their athletic abilities
Why:	NCAA doesn't want the student-athletes to be viewed as employees and be put on the same tier as the instructors NCAA wants to keep as much money as they can from the profits that are mostly generated from the players

Solving the Problem (ENT3003 Assignment 8A)

1. Selected Opportunity:
• The NCAA and its student-athletes are currently at odds regarding whether the student-athletes should be paid fairly to play for their respective institutions. This has been a longstanding debate and states are now taking action to soon allow these players to rightfully have a stake in the billions of dollars they generate for the NCAA and its institutions. This will force the NCAA to change its current rules and pay structure to include allowing these student-athletes to market off of their respective likenesses. With that being said, there is opportunity in bridging the gap between the two, especially in the early stages, to help either side enforce the new rules to one another.
2. Service/Product:
• A potential service can be to create an agency that prioritizes in learning the terminology of these new rules and help enforce them better. As an agency who specializes in enforcing the new rules of the NCAA, we can be hired by the NCAA as one of its trusted agencies who follows their new structure to the tee, while most importantly being the easiest choice for the student-athletes to be their representatives and make sure they're being compensated fairly and legally. As other agencies may have more seniority and/or reputation, we would be sure to express that those other agencies are usually dealing with professional athletes and not collegiate athletes, so they will surely have to change their methods to be able to represent student-athletes and follow the guidelines set by the NCAA.
• As the NCAA generates billions of dollars annually, it will surely prove to be quite difficult to track which sales were influenced by a specific student-athlete. A potential product to remedy this can be an app that helps each individual player track the sales of their memorabilia and maybe even determine how much they should expect to receive from the NCAA specifically, if the new rules gives them a certain percentage of their jersey sales or whatever the case. While the student-athletes may not be able to negotiate much more with the NCAA and its institutions under the new locked in terms and rates, they will be able to use these numbers to show their value and better negotiate the terms of their endorsement deals.

Testing the Hypothesis, Part 1 (ENT3003 Assignment 7A)

Opportunity: Help bridge the gap between the NCAA and student-athletes (and everyone else involved), in regards to the "fair pay for play" debate.

Hypothesis: The NCAA is unable and/or unwilling to allow student-athletes to be properly compensated for playing for its educational institutions because of the student-athletes potentially being negatively viewed as employees rather than students first and foremost.

• The Who: The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)
• The What: They are unwilling to allow student-athletes to be compensated for playing.
• The Why: Student-athletes will be viewed more as employees than students.

Interview 1:

1. Is the NCAA solely responsible for this dilemma and should they be tasked to fix it?
• Everyone involved is responsible and have to find common ground.
2. Do all institutions agree with this? Who else does this affect?
• No, there are bills coming out in specific states to allow their institutions to pay student-athletes. As well as the student-athletes, the NCAA and its institutions that are affected, the fans of collegiate sports are impacted as well.
3. Why is it important for student-athletes to be viewed as such? What other reasons are there to not allow student-athletes to be paid?
• Any type of student should not feel like they are on a higher (or even the same) level as their instructors financially; though they should not be ignored for their influence to the profit of the school's athletic departments either. Other reasons may be to keep as much money as they can from the likeness of these student-athletes.

Interview 2:

1. Is the NCAA solely responsible for this dilemma and should they be tasked to fix it?
• The media is responsible for the dilemma. In reality, there isn't a problem with the current system.
2. Do all institutions agree with this? Who else does this affect?
• There are already bills in process for specific states to pressure the NCAA into changing their pay structure. This affects the NCAA the most, making it harder for them to enforce their rules.
3. Why is it important for student-athletes to be viewed as such? What other reasons are there to not allow student-athletes to be paid?
• The purpose of them being students and learning from these professors is to someday get to that level and hopefully even surpass them, not feel like they're already there. Obviously, there is plenty of money involved in sports in general, the more the NCAA can keep to themselves the better for them.

Interview 3:

1. Is the NCAA solely responsible for this dilemma and should they be tasked to fix it?
• They are students who get full scholarships to live a better and easier college life than most. If there is a problem to fix, then it should be to not pamper them as much.
2. Do all institutions agree with this? Who else does this affect?
• Of course not, most institutions already pay these kids under the table to come play for them anyway. It affects the student-athletes because now they feel entitled to want even more.
3. Why is it important for student-athletes to be viewed as such? What other reasons are there to not allow student-athletes to be paid?
• Students should be focused on getting an education above anything else, otherwise there's no point to go to an educational institution, they can go overseas or semi-pro or whatever instead. There's plenty of money in collegiate sports, the NCAA wants as little hands on that pot as possible.

Interview 4:

1. Is the NCAA solely responsible for this dilemma and should they be tasked to fix it?
• Yes, the NCAA are the lawmakers of their association and everyone under them has to abide by their rules. They should fix it and pay their players already.
2. Do all institutions agree with this? Who else does this affect?
• No, there are some states trying to pass bills and allow their student-athletes to be compensated. This affects fans of states who wouldn't be able to compete because they start paying players for as long as the NCAA holds firm on not paying them.
3. Why is it important for student-athletes to be viewed as such? What other reasons are there to not allow student-athletes to be paid?
• That's just an excuse not to pay them for what they bring to the school as athletes. The NCAA is being greedy with the money that these kids are generating for them.

Interview 5:

1. Is the NCAA solely responsible for this dilemma and should they be tasked to fix it?
• No, the institutions have enough power to force the NCAA to make some changes. It should not pay the student-athletes directly, but still let them be able to compensate from their likeness.
2. Do all institutions agree with this? Who else does this affect?
• Many seem like they don't, but only now are they stepping up and challenging the NCAA about it. This affects the fans who put lots of their money into memorabilia of their favorite player or tickets to watch said player only for a season or two. If there was a better structure in place that benefits the players more, the student-athletes would be more willing to stay all 4 years, benefitting the fans, the NCAA and its institutions even more over a longer period.
3. Why is it important for student-athletes to be viewed as such? What other reasons are there to not allow student-athletes to be paid?
• They should be viewed as students first, that's true, but it is still a business at the end of the day; so if they're generating that much money for their institution, they should be able to also be compensated in some way. Again, the NCAA is a business, so they're not going to simply hand out money to the athletes just because it is the right thing to do; there has to be pushback on the rules that are already in place and the NCAA has to have another business plan in place before they decide to revise them.

Summary: Given my interviews, I learned that even though most people have their own opinions on the matter, they still usually come to a similar conclusion. No matter what side they're on, most of the people who I interviewed understand that an impasse in changing the current structure will not be beneficial to anyone sooner or later. Therefore, it is the general consensus that revising the rules to better benefit everyone should be in the best interest of everyone involved.

Identifying Opportunities in Economic & Regulatory Trends (ENT3003 Assignment 6A)

1. Millennials have an average of $28,000 in debt—and the biggest source isn’t student loans                  (Economic Trends)

• The source of this information was found on the CNBC Make It webpage, in the subsection titled "Become Debt-Free" under the "Money" section.
• I believe an opportunity exists because this information suggests that debt mostly doesn't come from student loans. Therefore, there can be even more services and resources allocated towards relieving personal loans rather than student loans, which is currently focused on more because it is widely believed that it is the main source of debt in millennials.
• Millennials with more personal loan debt than student loan debt are the prototypical customers in this situation.
• The opportunity should be relatively easy to exploit as there is already a model to go off of that helps in how there have been countless resources and services dedicated to eliminating the student debt of individuals.
• I saw this opportunity because I happen to have some debt in both personal and student loans and see how there is much more assistance provided for student loans. Therefore, I see the opportunity in putting more effort in eliminating personal loan debt over student loan debt.

2. American women hold two-thirds of all student debt—here’s why (Economic Trends)

• I found this opportunity in the subsection titled "Closing The Gap," under the "Work" section in the CNBC Make It webpage.
• This opportunity exists because the information suggests that there is an emphasis on student debt in women. In that case, women can be focused on more in dealing with this issue.
• The customers with the opportunity in this scenario are more than likely to be women who are in student debt.
• It will continue to be a challenge to exploit this opportunity as everyone has already been made aware of the disparity between male and female pay, and so it has proven to be a long process to correct.
• Since I have some female siblings and family members who are seemingly more successful and educated than most (if not all) of my male family members, yet are still stuck behind their student loan debt, I am able to see this opportunity.

3. Consumer-Directed Regulatory Changes Trigger Home Care Layoffs, Possible Closures                      (Regulatory Changes)

• This opportunity was found on the Home Health Care News website in the "Medicaid" subsection under the "Reimbursement" section.
• Information suggests that there is an existing opportunity as seniors and disabled people will need to seek out someone else to care for them since their own caregivers are being laid off and the agencies are looking to close down due to unfavorable regulatory changes.
• Seniors and disabled persons with a need for caregivers are the prototypical customers in this situation.
• There will be some difficulty in exploiting this opportunity under the new regulatory changes; and due to the fact that most of these customers will have likely preferred to stay with the caregiver that they previously chose who was laid off as a result of said changes.
• While I have senior and/or disabled relatives that have caregivers helping them out on a daily basis, I was able to realize this opportunity.

4. This NY State Senator’s Proposal to Pay College Athletes Could Drastically Change the Shoe              Endorsement Game (Regulatory Changes)

• I found this opportunity on the Footwear News website in the "Business" section under the "Legal News" subsection.
• There is an opportunity that exists as the information suggests student-athletes will be able to be paid for their likeness in the near future in states such as California and New York (with others sure to follow) if these bills get signed.
• Known and/or savvy student-athletes coming out of high school and attending an institution in these states are considered to be the customers with this opportunity.
• There will be no difficulty at all in exploiting this opportunity as the top-tier of these student-athletes are shown to boost the viewership and revenue of their respective institutions for the little time that they're there and then are able to sign major endorsement deals as soon as they become professionals. This reputation is largely built before the collegiate level, and is usually not changed much while there.
• I was able to see this opportunity as I am an avid sports enthusiast with a desire to pursue a career in the business side of sports.

Identifying Local Opportunities (ENT3003 Assignment 5A)

1. More than 630,000 pounds of trash collected in Alachua County
• Keep Alachua County Beautiful (KACB), a local non-profit organization, showed the exact numbers of their cleanup efforts in the community from 2018-2019. The annual report detailed a staggering 630,809 pounds of litter and debris collected, with 431,551 pounds of that total amount being recycled. There were more than 5,500 volunteers involved this year, a 20% increase from the year prior.
• The problem presented in this story is the amount of trash there is to be collected, on Alachua County streets alone. Granted, it is stated that some of that debris came from Hurricane Irma, contributing to such a high number, however, that still doesn't take away from the fact that there is a problem with keeping the streets clean nonetheless.
• Seeing how the volunteers are acting as the problem-solvers in this situation, cleaning up the streets for community service hours and experience among other things, the people who have the problem is Alachua County as a whole. Everyone from the high ranking officials to the residents of the county must do better to keep their areas clean.
2. UF resident assistant charged with battery released as 'high-achieving' student leader
• On August 28th, current UF senior, Ian Milaski, was arrested and accused of trying to sexually harass and assault a female student. Only 9 days later, however, he was released on both battery and false imprisonment charges after a motion to reduce his original bond was granted. Ian will be required to wear an ankle monitor, and can only be in the county unless authorized for "necessary" UF events and court dates.
• The problem presented in this story is how Ian was released as being described as a "high-achieving student leader" by the judge based off of his status as a senior teaching assistant with over 200 community service hours, as well as being a member of 2 honors societies. Furthermore, unless he gets dismissed from all of his commitments at the university, other than his classes of course, he will surely still have ample opportunities to be on campus and maybe even bump into the victim.
• Most importantly, the victim has the problem of potentially running into Ian again because of his 'slap on the wrist' and so she wouldn't have peace of mind and will instead be paranoid and unable to focus on her studies and other important things in her life. Despite the release, Ian will also have a problem with how he will be perceived from now on, both personally and professionally. Lastly, other potential rape victims in general will have even more of a problem coming forward after seeing how the verdict played out in this case.
3. Former Gators football player Neiron Ball dies at 27
• After being being in a medically induced coma since last September by a brain aneurysm that paralyzed all four of his limbs, Neiron Ball has passed away earlier this week. Ball's complications with brain illness dates back to his time at UF. He had to have surgery and miss the entire football season in 2011 for arteriovenous malformation (AVM).
• Despite it being obvious that he died from a brain injury, the problem is that the doctors failed to recognize exactly what happened or even the cause of his injuries, forcing them to rule his cause of death as unclear.
• Neiron's family and friends now have the problem of losing a father/brother/teammate without really even being at peace and understanding the process of the injury. Also, other victims of brain injuries, and their families, still have a problem of seemingly not getting any closer to understanding their own injuries and finding the necessary remedies for them.
4. UF Preview prices broke state law. How are they fixing it?
• Preview is a mandatory orientation that UF requires its incoming freshman or transfer students to attend. Despite the state's statutes limiting public universities to not charge more than $35 for orientation fees, the University of Florida has reportedly charged more than that cap for the past decade. After UF opened an internal investigation to resolve this issue back in March, they included a new $35 option for the summer sessions. However, this cheaper option was apparently not brought to the attention to all of the incoming students, as they were unaware of a cheaper option. Additionally, those who did go through the site thoroughly and found the link to the cheaper option, clicked on it only for it to show them a 'Page Not Found' error.
• The problem is that UF has not been held accountable for overcharging their incoming students in orientation costs. They should be required to reimburse at least the orientation fees for every student they overcharged dating back to the last decade or so.
• This is a problem for the incoming students and their parents who have to pay more out of their pockets for an orientation fee that should only be $35. Those prices can add up very quickly when you add the lodging and travel fees, not to mention the same price for every family member that wants to attend and rightfully make sure their prospective student is in good hands. This may also be a problem for the university, as I'm sure lawsuits will surely be coming now that it has been made aware that there should have been a cap on those charges.
5. Blood left at a church crime scene led to arrest of Gainesville man months later, deputies say
• With drops of his blood being left on the scene, Kyle Blundell was arrested and charged for breaking into The Greater New Hope Baptist Church. The pastor's office door was damaged, along with a broken glass window and an interior door said to be "broken in half." Kyle has previous misdemeanor charges of larceny and damage to property.
• The problem is that it took months to arrest this man, since the burglary happened back in June. The fact that he was arrested in Gainesville means he wasn't on the run and therefore not pursued well enough. Having someone's blood, and them already being in the system, should have led to an arrest much sooner. Another problem that could have contributed to the arrest was the church failing to have cameras in or around the building.
• This is a problem for the residents first and foremost, as they witness the slow response time of the authorities even with personal evidence left on the scene. The problem also persists for the authorities as they realize they have to do better in their response times. Furthermore, both the suspect and the victim face problems in this situation, with Blundell facing felony charges and the church seemingly having to improve their security measures to prevent this from happening again.

Forming An Opportunity Belief (ENT3003 Assignment 4A)

There is an unmet need in regards to having more choices of which after-hour club to go to in Gainesville. Most of this city is populated with college students who love to go out and enjoy themselves after a strenuous week of classes. As a result, the bar/club scene is quite lively on a regular basis. With that being said, most, if not all, of these establishments close at 2 AM, leaving these young well-deserving adults wanting more. To get more out of the night life, however, they only have about one option of an after-hour club to go to. Many students try to remedy this issue by throwing house parties, yet they're not usually in ideal living environments to be as consistent as they would like. To better remedy this issue, I am sure there is about a 95% chance that the opportunity exists to get more clubs open after-hours.

1. Customer 1
• When you go out, do you usually wish you had more time to party and enjoy yourself?
• Sometimes, but I take what I can get.
• When do you usually realize that the night is ending earlier than expected?
• I usually already know how much time is left before heading out.
• How long have you realized that there is really only one after-hour club to go to?
• Not until late sophomore year.
• How are you addressing this issue?
• I'm usually ready to go home afterwards anyway.
• How satisfied are you with that solution?
• It's not bad, I'm pretty satisfied with the time I get.
• Reflection: There are people who genuinely like to go home at 2 AM. My opportunity may not appeal to these people much. However, at times when they do want to stay out past 2 AM, another option wouldn't hurt.
2. Customer 2
• When you go out, do you usually wish you had more time to party and enjoy yourself?
• Definitely man, all the time.
• When do you usually realize that the night is ending earlier than expected?
• Right when they start kicking us out of the first club.
• How long have you noticed that there is really only one after-hour club to go to?
• Ever since I first got here.
• How are you addressing this issue?
• I still go to that after-hour club.
• How satisfied are you with that solution?
• They play hip hop so that's cool, I like it. Wish I can switch it up sometimes though, that would be nice.
• Reflection: This is the type of person to target, and I'm sure there are plenty others with similar views. After the first customer, I felt like my opportunity may not be worth it in this area, but I learned there are plenty of others who enjoy staying out past 2 AM and are interested to have options rather than going to the same place every time.
3. Customer 3
• When you go out, do you usually wish you had more time to party and enjoy yourself?
• Yeah, of course.
• When do you usually realize that the night is ending earlier than expected?
• After leaving the club around 2 AM.
• How long have you noticed that there is really only one after-hour club to go to?
• Since I started going to bars and clubs out here, not too long ago.
• How are you addressing this issue?
• I tend to go to house parties more often than not.
• How satisfied are you with that solution?
• House parties are chill, though it wouldn't hurt to have more options from time to time.
• Reflection: Plenty of the customers are still in their early stages of going out and having fun. Therefore, they still prefer the house parties over the bar and club scene for now. However, if there were more options for them to go to, they wouldn't feel as pressured and uncomfortable of going to someone else's house after 2 AM just to "chill" and can expand on their nightlife experience a bit more.

My opportunity of expanding the after-hour nightlife in Gainesville is still very much present. However, it is not as accurate as before, seeing as how there looks to be a higher percentage of people that prefer to either go to a house party or go home after 2 AM in this area. In conclusion, I feel like there is still an opportunity for profit in this market, though not nearly as much as I initially envisioned. It is extremely important for entrepreneurs to assess the market and adapt their opportunities accordingly based off of customer feedback. This will better determine how much should be invested into the venture and, in turn, how much should be expected to come back in as a result.

Entrepreneurship Story (ENT3003 Assignment 3A)

Just recently, my twin brother and I decided to finally buy our first house. However, this is not because we plan to settle down here. We've been living in Gainesville for over 2 years now and have seen the numerous opportunities that are made available to anyone willing to turn a profit. Therefore, after wasting our money on rent while living in apartments, we realized it would be smarter to invest in a house and put our hard-earned money into something that will make us money in return. Not only are we planning on selling the house later on when the market value rises considerably, but we also intend to furnish the master bedroom and start earning back that money now.

I mainly enrolled in ENT 3003 because it is the entry level course to my minor of entrepreneurship. With that being said, I do hope to learn new and exciting ways to expand my thinking and become a successful entrepreneur. Accomplishing such a feat entails not being afraid to fail and actually embracing said failures to learn from them and do better the next time around. Principles of Entrepreneurship will seemingly start to provide me with and/or sharpen the tools that are needed to succeed in this field.