Blog 23: Senior project presentation

(1) Positive Statement

What are you most proud of in your block presentation and/or your senior project? Why?
Overall I'm really proud of my lecture content. I really feel that I gave solid information and cited my sources very well throughout. I presented as if I wasnt nervous at all which also helped me in assuring my presentaion would be clear. I'm usually one to speak a million miles a minute but I had to constantly remind myself to speak very slowly so it didn't sound too crazy and everybody could follow along. I'm very proud that I did a good job at that.
(2) Questions to Consider

a.     What assessment would you give yourself on your block presentation (self-assessment)?

AE       P          AP       CR       NC
AE-
b.     What assessment would you give yourself on your overall senior project (self-assessment)?

AE       P          AP       CR       NC
P+/AE-

(3) What worked for you in your senior project?
What worked for me was definitely having an amazing mentor to guide me throughout the year and fill me with the knowledge I wouldn't have gotten otherwise. Without her I wouldn't have been as prepared as I was. Amy, my mentor, taught me so much more than I thought I would have ever learned going through this senior project. She is essentially where I got most of my information from and what made me that much more passionate about my topic. 

(4) (What didn't work) If you had a time machine, what would you have done differently to improve your senior project if you could go back in time?
I honestly don't believe anything didn't work. I went through my senior project very smoothly without any bumps in the road. The only thing I would've done differently is perhaps practicing one more time just to make sure I wasn't stuttering and saying all of of the correct information. 
(5) Finding Value

How has the senior project been helpful to you in your future endeavors?   Be specific and use examples.
If I was doubting by any means before that business management was my passion, it is not anymore. Researching this whole year more into this topic has guaranteed my happiness will rely on going to school and studying for this. It has given me so much more experience than most kids my age can say they have, and will definitely give me an advantage. I can already see how studying this for my senior project has helped me. I want to apply to as many retail jobs as possible and having all this background knowledge on business management in retail has put me ahead of others who might apply to the same job, even if they have more work experience than I do.  As much as senior project has been a pain in the butt I'm super happy and thankful to have gotten this opportunity in preparing me for my future.

Mentorship

   Interpretive

     What is the most important thing you gained from this experience? Why?

The most important thing I have gained from this experience is that ensuring successful managing in a small retail business, or any retail business for that matter require several different actions. I now understand how much more difficult it is to manage a store than i thought it was. Working with my me or Amy had given me the chance to see how she runs and manages her store and what I can take in and use in the future. The most important thing I have learned from her is ensuring the happiness in customers. She is probably one of the most. If not the most welcoming employee (manager in her case) that I have ever encountered. I have realized how crucial it is to greet every customer with a smile, start small talk just to ask how their day is going or what they need help with. It makes the customer feel appreciated and valued, which should be a common goal for all retail stores.

   Applied

     How has what you’ve done helped you to answer your EQ?  Please explain.

Everything I have researched for my EQ to find my answers has been proven by everything I have seen at Maple Boutique. My answer one came specially from an interview with Amy. She told me how social media is the biggest way of getting her business out there and bringing more people in. My second answer which is creating a website also came from Amy. It wasnt directly from her, but observing how much goes on her website and how much profit comes from having a clear and concise website for her business allowed me to research more into if it would be a good answer to my EQ. My last answer which is professional customer service 100% came from mentoring at Maple. Like explained in my first question, making the customer feel like they are a part of the company or business should be the business's top priority. 

Exit Interview

(1) What is your essential question, and what are your answers?  What is your best answer and why?

EQ: What is the best way to maximize profits in a small retail business

Answer 1: Promoting the business through social media 

Answer 2: Providing the best possible customer service

Answer 3:  Creating and maintaining a visually appealing, yet helpful website

Best Answer: 3

The reason I chose answer 3 as my best answer is because customer service is what creates loyal customers which leads to positive word of mouth, and brings in more customers. Having excellent customer service encourages customers to keep coming back leading to more money for the business. 

(2) What process did you take to arrive at this answer?

Mentoring at Maple I experienced how well Amy and her employees treat her customers whether it be from helping them shop around the store, or following up with them after they make a purchase at the store. A simple "hello" or "thank you" when  the customers enter and leave the store is what makes the customer feel appreciated and brings them back for that same experience. Also, researching my topic this whole year gave me insight to a lot of different ways a small business could be successful, and I came across customer service more then plenty times, only to reassure it as my best answer. 

(3) What problems did you face?  How did you resolve them?

In the beginning of the year I had trouble finding a mentor who could guide me through this year long experience. I guess the saying " Good things happen to those who wait" is true, because not long after I was almost about to give up, I found Amy. I called several boutiques in the Claremont Village, and finally one store was able to give me the "okay", which was Maple Boutique. Amy has been a huge blessing and help to researching my senior project. Not only is she super kind in assisting me with any of my needs, but she goes out of her way to teach me all the ins and outs of the business. 

(4) What are the two most significant sources you used to answer your essential question and why?

• Tahir, Liz. "10 Effective Customer Service Tips." About.com. About.com, n.d. Web. 26 Apr. 2015.- This article gave me more then plenty help as to why customer service is so crucial, especially in smaller businesses. It also gave me a detailed list as to what is important in customer service and how to improve it. 

• Third interview with my mentor, Amy- This interview in specific helped me understand how social media plays a huge role in Maple Boutique, and what she does specifically on it to promote the business. She further explained how having a functioning websiste for her business helps her control what she sells, who she sells it to, and how it beings in more business for the boutique. Both of these things helped me back up my answers to my EQ, and generate further research. 

April Extra Blog Post

     Helping Amy while tagging accessories, she told me how she uses the style number system for her store. It helped me understand how she tracks all her items when she puts them in the POS. Amy says this way its easier to know what's in the store and how many of them there are, so she can manage products more efficiently. She told me a story how when she first started off, a customer shoplifted her store right in front of her, and at the time she didn't know what to do, but since then she's gotten a lot better at keeping track of everything and not letting thing like that happen.
   The highlight of mentoring this month was attending a Maple Boutique event. Amy invited customers to come in and create floral crowns for Coachella week, which was a huge turnout. Not only were there a lot of customers to make the crowns, but a lot of customers for sales. I've been to previous events at Maple, but this was by far my favorite because I got to see more of how Amy's employees act towards customers to exceed great customer service; which is one of my answers. Not only that, but it was a great environment, and it helped me open up to speak to customers more and assist them with anything they needed.
   While interviewing Donna this month (owner of The Grove Boutique) I realized how many different managing styles there are. Donna is very more laid back and doesn't do much managing as lets say her daughter does for the store, while Amy is very hands-on and always on top of everything that goes on in her store. I admire Amy for that because it shows me how committed and how much her store is really her passion. The one thing both owners have in common is believing in having excellent customer service, which if I was doubting as my best answer to my EQ before, is now for certain. It was definitely nice to get a different perspective from another owner, so I could compare between managing styles in small businesses.

Independent Component 2

LITERAL
(a) I,Yuritzi Mora, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 32 hours of work
(b)

1.  "10 Ways to Deliver Great Customer Service." BusinessNewsDaily.com. Purch, 6 Oct. 2011. Web. 27 Mar. 2015.
2. Sisson, Natalie. "7 Key Tools To Run Your Online Business From Anywhere."Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 25 Aug. 2013. Web. 26 Feb. 2015.
3. Moskowitz, Robert. "How to Safely Expand Your Small Business | QuickBooks." QuickBooks. Intuit, 04 Mar. 2013. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

(c) My hours are updated(d) For my independent component I completed 32 extra hours of mentorship. Originally my plan for independent component 2 was to take a class up at Cal Poly on psychology. Unfortunately, all the classes were either filled, or the professors told me they weren't taking any I-Poly kids at the moment. When psychology classes didn't work out, I decided to look for accounting classes or anything that could help me learn about finances more, but almost all the classes on that had prerequisites. That's when I decided to just talk to my mentor and ask if I could come into the store more often to complete extra hours with her.  
  INTERPRETIVE Defend your work and explain the component's significance and how it demonstrates 30 hours of work.  
While completing extra hours working/mentoring at Maple Boutique, Amy explained to me a lot more about the business side in retail. I learned how to complete order and sales forms, then, how to sort the store's finances. I also asked Amy how she started her store's website and she showed me what's important to include, and what draws customer's in. For most of my mentorship, a lot of what I was learning was how to deal with customers or how to organize around the store, so I was very happy and content when Amy gave me the opportunity to expand my business knowledge. For the extra hours I mentored, there was also plenty in store events which allowed me to see how Amy organizes events for her store and how she interacts with larger groups of customers. Attending these events also made me open up and speak to customers, rather than steaming or tagging clothes like I usually do.

 





APPLIEDHow did the component help you answer your EQ? Please include specific examples to illustrate how it helped. 
One answer to my EQ is maintaining a visually striking yet organized website, and the other is having great customer service. Amy was able to show me how both work so well for her store. Like previously explained, Amy showed me why having a website for her boutique is so important. She explained to me why she chooses to have a simple layout rather than something that will overwhelm visitors. She taught me what should be excluded and what MUST be included. At the beginning of when I started mentoring she told me her website didn't include online shopping, but she decided to input it because it's what her customers wanted and found more convenient. I found this extremely helpful as it explained more to me why a website can bring in more profits for a small business. My last answer is customer service and I was definitely able to see how good customer service, keeps customers coming back. Amy and her employees are by far one of the best examples of great customer service I have seen in ANY store. Not only are they kind and welcoming, but they make customers feel like they are part of the store and will go out their way to assist anybody. I appreciated how well they handled groups of customers at the store events, and how they would constantly made everybody feel included. Out of all my time mentoring at Maple, not once have I heard a customer complain, and that showed me everything I learned from Amy is valuable. 

March Blog Post

The month of March was very productive in my mentorship hours, due to the fact that I have learned more about the business side in retail. Amy began teaching me more about order sales. What an order sale is, is basically the reciept for what you have ordered and from what designer. Each order sale has what you purchased and how much you bought it for. At the end of each list, you sum up everything you have bought from that designer to find out the total. Then, you file them away to have handy. For instance, if the store is running low on clothes you can check what's comjng in for the next month, call the company and ask them to send your clothes sooner if they have them ready.
At first I was a little intimidated since these are her finances, and I didn't want to miscalculate anything. Once I got the hang out it, it became relatively easy and helpful for me to see how she spends her money throughout the store.
I am now preping for my interview 4, which I am excited to do. At first, I wasn't looking forward to this last interview since the person I was going to interview wasn't exactly who I would want to ask questions to. Amy was kind enough to offer her help; she told me she would be more than happy to contact one of the other business owners in the village so I could interview them. Now I have to come in contact with whoever it is she will be willing to set me up with, and clean up on my questions. I feel this final interview will be extremely helpful, since getting a different opinion on business besides my mentor is always a good thing. Business had so many aspects to it and every owner runs their business differently. The more perspective I have on how to run a business, the more experience and knowledge I will have towards it.

20 Questions

1. What would you say are the main differences between owning the business and managing it? 

2. What is the toughest part about managing a business? 

3. Who helps you maintain the business the most? 

4. Where do you find vendors? 

5. What are you guidelines when hiring new employees? 

6. What is the most important thing your business needs to provide in order to keep customers happy? 

7. What do you do to keep your team cohesive and motivated to sell? 

8. How did you chose your target audience? 

9. What are some classes that would be crucial or helpful to take in order to get a better understanding of managing? 

10. What has shaped you to become a better manager?

11. How do you provide quality customer service? 

12. Does your store have a website or do you run a blog to renovate more business or interest amongst customers? 

13. Why did you pick this location for your business? What about this location made it stand out for you? 

14. Most important thing to know about finances in a business? 

15. About after how long did it take for you to get accustomed in managing the store and what comes along with it? 

16. What do you feel you can improve on as a manager? 

17. Do you have a strategy going into each month about how to reach the store's goals? 

18. What do you do to solve any disagreements your employees may have with each other? 

19. What do you think is the most effective way to manage a business? 

20. Important qualities a manager must have?