by Michael B. Arevalo
Being the one of the forerunners and general manager of SoyWorks, I feel that I carry the greatest burden to carry out business operation. I am involved with all aspect of the business- operations, marketing, management and finance. The reason is for one, the location of the office and the production area of the business is in our residence and second, my group mates, or should I say partners, are not passionate enough to pursue business of manufacturing soy products. That is why I feel like I am tasked to motivate them each time they are losing their grip towards taking a huge effort towards the success of the enterprise.
Business is indeed a hard thing to do. Each decision you make may either give a negative or positive implication to the business. The risk is really high, but at the same time fun and challenging. I remember when we were still in the process of product development; we made some taste test to a group of kids playing along the streets to see whether the product is good enough for the market. At a first glance, they were astonished and somehow attracted to the colorful packaging but unfortunately they did not like the taste. And to worsen the situation, a grownup lady approached us saying that our product isn’t good and her daughter hated it (I think she is just demanding a money back). We really felt “so small” as if we were fully discouraged to pursue business anymore.
But well, here we are, able to meet the sales quota. All thanks to our teamwork and hard work. We now learned that business is like a series of rising and falling, you just have to learn to adapt and go with the flow. That means everything that may happen in the course of the business is inevitable and its negative effects should never be taken as something that is against the partnership but rather an obstacle that would lead to the improvement of the enterprise as a whole. One must never “surrender” because of the feeling of inferiority over his competitors. A starting business must idolize those big businesses and how they are able to capture their market, instead of just envying them without doing anything. A business that is just starting to operate must remain tough and optimistic for all businesses, be it big or super big, have gone through being small before they are able to attain their “bigness”.
A business must be treated as “separate entity”- or simply some sort of individual just like us. And, just like an individual he must exist as a separate individual. In the course of managing the business for almost three months, I fully implemented the general policy stated in all accounting books which is embodied with the GAAPS. This means that a business must exist independently in the sense that all transactions must be accounted for and by the business. It is like saying that “never get a penny on someone else’s pocket”. In no certain cases, that the account of a natural being, the partners in this instance, can be united as one. The principle is universal and applies to all forms of organization. As such, no one can account his personal expenses directly and solely to the organization- it must always be separate.
I also learned that managing a business is really hard. You need to be logical and able to clearly see the possible outcomes of each decision you make. It is not about going “so-so” or just going with the flow. Venturing into a business is a serious matter that must be taken seriously. Every decision that you make must embody the goal or purpose of the business, and each decision that you make must be leaned towards profit maximization and overall business growth.
Business must be carried out despite strong barriers or obstacles- in our case; the greatest hindrance is when it comes to our schedule. There are times that we could hardly focus on our business because of time constraints. We are five in the groups but some of us do not share a common time especially during production days. But despite all these, we are able to produce our products during specific dates- all because of extreme passion and dedication towards work and to actualize the main purpose of the business which is to gain sales.
Adaptation in business is very necessary. One must able to withstand rapid changes- with market prices, supplier responses, etc. Just like an analogy of a bamboo to naturally be strong regardless of the strong winds and climate changes that would somehow try to wreck it apart. As an active partner of the business, I guess the greatest adaptation scheme that I made was to learn to accept the diversity of my partners’ attitude and values. For instance, the way I value time is far different from how Micha and January value time. My attitude of being result oriented is not within the range of Domeng’s attitude. These clear differences were the first obstacles that we have overcome in our business. Our first few weeks as a university-recognized partnership were quite hard, precisely because we have not clearly stipulated a vision towards the attainment of the organizational goals. Our goals were not united as one not enabling us to pass the requirements in the definition of an organization (a group of individuals with a common goal). It was until a heartfelt oath of each partner that all were awakened and such transition is seen to have changed their attitude and values as well. I can absolutely say that now, we are one.
Another great obstacle that we have faced (or maybe, are bound to face) was with regards to one partner who is not doing his part as a partner. I don’t think that stating his name is necessary but at the back of my head, I think I should. He’s name is Miguel Domingo. It is he, who has contributed not even a single cent for the business, and he who rarely appears during meeting and production days- even during our ribbon cutting ceremony for our production area and during trade fairs. His “I don’t care” attitude has lead us to think that he doesn’t exist… at all! Let me clear things up that this doesn’t mean that we are not having teamwork ‘coz we do. Neither should be thought that I am just making this up as a strategy just to “put mud over other people’s face”. I am just being honest because I see that he gives the least effort as far as the business is concerned. I just want to be fair.
I can say that of all the members in the partnership called SoyWorks, it is I who is able to give the greatest participation. More than just being the overall manager, it is I acting as the PIO or some sort, scheduling and sending text messages especially during meetings. It is I who helped in the construction of our production area (well, by carrying hollow blocks and doing construction worker stuff), and it is also I who had to wake up 5 o’clock in the morning just to prepare the needed materials to produce products just in time for the recess of elementary and high school pupils (that’s about 9:30 in the morning). And it is also I who enact all advertising strategies- pins, chaleco, streamers, name it, I did it. And it is also I who keeps all the transaction records, makes most part of the business plan, and makes the portfolio alone.
Business is a new world to me, more like a maze. Though I have a bird’s eye view, I feel a little lost in the wide scope of this unknown world. Every right and left turn has its own implications which may either be beneficial or not. But I am never afraid to decide when and where to turn. In my quest of finding the way out, feel stronger and more knowledgeable about this world. I will soon recognize that business is just a piece of cake especially when you are able to do right turn. In the end, I will figure out to solve the puzzle and find my way out to this land of confusion. Soon, I will become more and more knowledgeable which is my key towards success.
Being the one of the forerunners and general manager of SoyWorks, I feel that I carry the greatest burden to carry out business operation. I am involved with all aspect of the business- operations, marketing, management and finance. The reason is for one, the location of the office and the production area of the business is in our residence and second, my group mates, or should I say partners, are not passionate enough to pursue business of manufacturing soy products. That is why I feel like I am tasked to motivate them each time they are losing their grip towards taking a huge effort towards the success of the enterprise.
Business is indeed a hard thing to do. Each decision you make may either give a negative or positive implication to the business. The risk is really high, but at the same time fun and challenging. I remember when we were still in the process of product development; we made some taste test to a group of kids playing along the streets to see whether the product is good enough for the market. At a first glance, they were astonished and somehow attracted to the colorful packaging but unfortunately they did not like the taste. And to worsen the situation, a grownup lady approached us saying that our product isn’t good and her daughter hated it (I think she is just demanding a money back). We really felt “so small” as if we were fully discouraged to pursue business anymore.
But well, here we are, able to meet the sales quota. All thanks to our teamwork and hard work. We now learned that business is like a series of rising and falling, you just have to learn to adapt and go with the flow. That means everything that may happen in the course of the business is inevitable and its negative effects should never be taken as something that is against the partnership but rather an obstacle that would lead to the improvement of the enterprise as a whole. One must never “surrender” because of the feeling of inferiority over his competitors. A starting business must idolize those big businesses and how they are able to capture their market, instead of just envying them without doing anything. A business that is just starting to operate must remain tough and optimistic for all businesses, be it big or super big, have gone through being small before they are able to attain their “bigness”.
A business must be treated as “separate entity”- or simply some sort of individual just like us. And, just like an individual he must exist as a separate individual. In the course of managing the business for almost three months, I fully implemented the general policy stated in all accounting books which is embodied with the GAAPS. This means that a business must exist independently in the sense that all transactions must be accounted for and by the business. It is like saying that “never get a penny on someone else’s pocket”. In no certain cases, that the account of a natural being, the partners in this instance, can be united as one. The principle is universal and applies to all forms of organization. As such, no one can account his personal expenses directly and solely to the organization- it must always be separate.
I also learned that managing a business is really hard. You need to be logical and able to clearly see the possible outcomes of each decision you make. It is not about going “so-so” or just going with the flow. Venturing into a business is a serious matter that must be taken seriously. Every decision that you make must embody the goal or purpose of the business, and each decision that you make must be leaned towards profit maximization and overall business growth.
Business must be carried out despite strong barriers or obstacles- in our case; the greatest hindrance is when it comes to our schedule. There are times that we could hardly focus on our business because of time constraints. We are five in the groups but some of us do not share a common time especially during production days. But despite all these, we are able to produce our products during specific dates- all because of extreme passion and dedication towards work and to actualize the main purpose of the business which is to gain sales.
Adaptation in business is very necessary. One must able to withstand rapid changes- with market prices, supplier responses, etc. Just like an analogy of a bamboo to naturally be strong regardless of the strong winds and climate changes that would somehow try to wreck it apart. As an active partner of the business, I guess the greatest adaptation scheme that I made was to learn to accept the diversity of my partners’ attitude and values. For instance, the way I value time is far different from how Micha and January value time. My attitude of being result oriented is not within the range of Domeng’s attitude. These clear differences were the first obstacles that we have overcome in our business. Our first few weeks as a university-recognized partnership were quite hard, precisely because we have not clearly stipulated a vision towards the attainment of the organizational goals. Our goals were not united as one not enabling us to pass the requirements in the definition of an organization (a group of individuals with a common goal). It was until a heartfelt oath of each partner that all were awakened and such transition is seen to have changed their attitude and values as well. I can absolutely say that now, we are one.
Another great obstacle that we have faced (or maybe, are bound to face) was with regards to one partner who is not doing his part as a partner. I don’t think that stating his name is necessary but at the back of my head, I think I should. He’s name is Miguel Domingo. It is he, who has contributed not even a single cent for the business, and he who rarely appears during meeting and production days- even during our ribbon cutting ceremony for our production area and during trade fairs. His “I don’t care” attitude has lead us to think that he doesn’t exist… at all! Let me clear things up that this doesn’t mean that we are not having teamwork ‘coz we do. Neither should be thought that I am just making this up as a strategy just to “put mud over other people’s face”. I am just being honest because I see that he gives the least effort as far as the business is concerned. I just want to be fair.
I can say that of all the members in the partnership called SoyWorks, it is I who is able to give the greatest participation. More than just being the overall manager, it is I acting as the PIO or some sort, scheduling and sending text messages especially during meetings. It is I who helped in the construction of our production area (well, by carrying hollow blocks and doing construction worker stuff), and it is also I who had to wake up 5 o’clock in the morning just to prepare the needed materials to produce products just in time for the recess of elementary and high school pupils (that’s about 9:30 in the morning). And it is also I who enact all advertising strategies- pins, chaleco, streamers, name it, I did it. And it is also I who keeps all the transaction records, makes most part of the business plan, and makes the portfolio alone.
Business is a new world to me, more like a maze. Though I have a bird’s eye view, I feel a little lost in the wide scope of this unknown world. Every right and left turn has its own implications which may either be beneficial or not. But I am never afraid to decide when and where to turn. In my quest of finding the way out, feel stronger and more knowledgeable about this world. I will soon recognize that business is just a piece of cake especially when you are able to do right turn. In the end, I will figure out to solve the puzzle and find my way out to this land of confusion. Soon, I will become more and more knowledgeable which is my key towards success.
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