Performance Evaluations!

As previously discussed, this week and next will be dedicated to completing performance evaluations for all employees, and devising a plan to improve our performance and the performance of future firms.  Having completed your reflections last week, each of you has had the time to think about tasks you’ve completed, lessons learned, areas where you can continue to develop.  Reflection is essential to learning about yourself and your growth as an employee. 

Here’s a breakdown of your tasks for the week:

Monday: You will receive a 2-page evaluation form.  Complete the form based on your interpretation of your performance.  Be fair, honest, and thorough in your appraisal of your performance.  During the last 15 minutes of class, we will discuss your findings.

Tuesday through Friday: We will complete evaluations in the following order: Vice Presidents, associates, CFO, CEO.  After each evaluation, we will discuss what we agree and disagree with, as well as discuss ways to improve performance in the future. 

That’s all I have for you this week.  Though this post is short and sweet, there is a lot of “meat on the bones” regarding what we will be doing.  I look forward to hearing your self-appraisals and seeing how you deal with constructive criticism from your peers.  Have a great week!

2013-14 Performance Reflections

If we look back on what we've done this year, there have been a lot of highlights mixed with some not-so-memorable moments.  We've written an Office Guru business plan, prepared for Regional and State competitions, attended a Trade Fair, completed case studies, blogged, and run a semi-successful virtual business.  This week will be dedicated to looking back and reflecting upon four of your most memorable projects or tasks that you completed during the school year.  I'm not going to put concrete borders on what or how I want you to post other than requiring each entry to be at least 250 words.  The goal of this exercise is to let you look back and see just how much you've learned this year and prepare for your end-of-year performance evaluation.

Each day this week, you will focus on one of the following projects and type a reflective blog entry about your personal opinion of your performance, what you learned, and how that project will help you in the future.  By the end of the week, you will have completed four blog entries:

• Office Guru Business Plan
• Promotional Sales Materials
• Resume Creation
• Interview Exercises
• Trade Fair Preparation
• The Trade Fair Experience
• Reflecting upon motivational videos/literature
• Individual Business Plan Creation
• Day-to-day business operations (your departmental tasks)
• Sales calls
• Weekly Newsletter
• Employee Spotlight
• Company Manual
• Payroll distribution
• Anything else that stands out from your classwork this year

We'll share out some of our entries next week and begin our personal performance evaluations before our executives and I conduct formal performance evaluations.

I look forward to reading your posts.  This week and next will be a lot of fun.  

Finishing Up Presentations

Hi everybody!  This week we will finish up presenting our individual business plans.  I look forward to hearing the rest of your presentations, and since those remaining have had an entire Spring Break to tweak/amend their presentations, you will obviously be held to a higher standard than those who have already presented.

When preparing your presentations, remember the 3 most important aspects of a business presentation (know your audience, know your content, separate yourself!).  Be sure to appeal to your investors and don't hesitate to ask for the business!  It would obviously help to have a specific amount of capital in mind, and be willing to negotiate.

For those of you observing/considering investing in the businesses, remember to complete the critique sheets during the presentation and jot down some important questions for each business owner.  This will enhance the experience for all of you.  Take ownership of your learning and you will grow beyond your imagination.  Below is a screen shot of the critique sheets:

Enjoy your Spring Break!  I can't wait to start back up when we return!

The Order is Set - 4th Period

Hi VE students!  I've chosen names out of a hat and here is the order for our presentations, which will begin tomorrow:

1.    Ashworth, Ashley
2.    Howe, Michael
3.    Jackson, Jonas
4.    Harris, Samuel
5.    Newton, Earl
6.    Ruble, Bradley
7.    Taylor Jones, Romein D'Quan
8.    Gray, Markale
9.    Dorton, Aaron
10.    Unsell, Erin
11.    Smith, Elaina
12.    Huggins, Alan
13.    Thomas, Justyce
14.    Jones, Dereka
15.    Tyree, Brandon
16.    Tucker, Ashley

This will take approximately 6-8 class periods.  Feel free to dress in business attire for extra credit.  Good luck!

Showtime!

It’s finally here!  All the hard work, research, brainstorming, writing, discussing, analyzing, and preparing has been done.  You are now ready for the all important presentation of your business plan. 

I realize you are all well aware that this week is our time to make your presentation to your potential investors, but before you get out there and give it your all, I would like to begin Monday’s class by showing you some well-prepared business plan presentations to get you pumped up about this assignment. 

Check out this segment from Shark Tank Season 3 Episode 6:

Now, without taking any notes or thinking critically about what each presenter did well or poorly, just take in the passion and confidence each person exhibited.  Understand that all the hard work you’ve put in for the past 9 weeks has prepared you to do the same for your presentation.  You can do it.  It’s your time to shine.

Now, if you’re still a bit nervous (totally understandable), just keep in mind the 3 main areas of focus for presenting in my class:

1.     Know your audience: whether you wish to present to a bank or panel of investors, understand what it is they are looking for in a business plan.  You will do well if you have a great idea, an excellent opportunity for profit, or a strong model for getting things done.  Heck, if you show someone that you have that “it factor,” you might just charm your way into getting startup capital.

2.     Know your content (product): make sure you’re ready to address any questions about how you will succeed, why your business is better than the rest, or why the market is ready for your business.  Set yourself apart from the rest and show your passion for your product.  Maybe the reason why you will do well is because your idea is off the charts.  Perhaps YOU are the reason for this, or maybe the world needs your idea and the startup capital is all you need.

3.     Separate yourself: in any aspect of life, who you are matters.  We love to use the term “differentiation” in education and business because it means something.  Take this opportunity to separate yourself from the competition, and you will succeed in getting your business off the ground.  Nobody wants to see a cookie-cutter presentation.  That’s just plain boring.  Think of what you are going to do to get the audience’s attention, and you’ll get it done

This week’s clear target is simple: We can analyze and critique a business plan presentation.  While presenting, cover al bases and do well at what you know best.  While observing, take into consideration the following:

1.     What are 2 (or more) things the presenter did well?

2.     What are 2 (or more) things you would do differently if you were presenting

3.     Would you invest in this business? Why?

Have questions ready for each presenter while observing, and act like an investor (or bank).  Be ready to challenge each individual, since it’s your money going into the business if you like what you see. 

Complete a critique sheet for each presenter and turn in your completed package this Friday.  Let’s have a great week!

Executive Summary and Finish Up - Take Two

Well, everybody.  We're going to try this again.  I hope you enjoyed your week off and stayed safe and warm with the rough weather.  This week, we will complete all tasks outlined in last week's blog entry. 

Also, I want to thank everyone who worked diligently over the past week playing catch-up on missing work.  I greatly appreciate your hard work and dedication to your studies.  The effort you have shown is what will help you accomplish great things, be it in school, business, or any endeavor you choose!

The End is Near

Hi everybody!  I’ve held off on writing this week’s blog entry due to the threat of severe weather coming our way.  Something tells me we may either have a delayed opening or no school tomorrow, but I’m going to break this week’s plan into 5 days, which can be consolidated into 4 if needed.  As the title of this post suggests, the end of our project is near.  This week will be dedicated to completing the Executive Summary, arguably the most important aspect of the business plan, organizing the plan, a simple task as long as you follow the rubric, and creation of the electronic presentation that you will use when presenting to your investors (side note: you do not need to make a PowerPoint or Prezi if you wish to just use the document viewer or pitch your business without visual aides, however I suggest you have something for your investors to view when you present).  Here’s the week’s breakdown:

Monday and Tuesday: Executive Summary

As stated earlier, the Executive Summary is arguably the most important aspect of a business plan.  Since it is the first section of your business plan, the executive summary serves two purposes.  Your Executive Summary serves as your first impression on any potential investor, since it’s the first thing they’ll read in your plan.  What you say, how you say it, and how it is presented can be a make or break for your venture.  If an investor doesn’t like what he/she sees in this section, chances are no further pages will be turned in your plan.  Think about it.  If you begin reading a book or an article online and the first few pages/paragraphs don’t exactly catch your eye, will you continue to read on?  Likely not.  Similarly, if an investor has numerous business plans on the table, will he/she really want to read through an entire 20/30/40/50+ pages if the beginning doesn’t sound so hot?  I doubt it.  Additionally, your Executive summary will allow you to highlight facts and statistics that will stand out in the rest of your plan.  Essentially, it will serve as a sneak preview for the reader. 

First, read through this article about how to write an executive summary and what to include.  Take notes on the 7 elements of the executive summary and jot down what you wish to include as you read.  Next, read page 1 of this live business plan for a bakery for an excellent model of a well-constructed executive summary.  Now, I understand that reading these two links is likely to occupy an entire class period if you put your mind to it.  This means there is no tolerance for talking during class.  That’s how it goes if you’re going to get this work done. 

Once you’ve finished your reading, it’s time to take what you’ve learned and put it into writing.  You’ll need to write a rough draft of at least 1 page and make adjustments throughout the week.  Remember, this section of the project is extremely important.  I’d assume you may begin writing this at the end of class on Monday (or Tuesday if we don’t come in tomorrow) or at the beginning of class Tuesday (or Wednesday if weather keeps us home tomorrow).

Wednesday: Proofread and Organize

Today you will read through your entire plan and correct any “squiggly line errors” that appear in MS Word.  You know, the red or green lines that appear below any spelling or grammar errors that Word identifies for you.  Isn’t technology great?  Next, you’ll put your business plan in the correct order, as outlined by the scoring rubric (can be found in my Public_Faculty Folder).  Take your time on this and dedicate yourself to putting everything in order, as I will deduct points if your plan is not organized properly.

Thursday and Friday: Presentation Preparation

I have already dropped the 2012 VE business plan presentation in my Public_Faculty folder.  Please feel free to use this as a model for your presentation.  The best aspects of this presentation are the graphics, transitions, and animations.  Think about it.  Would you really like to see a wall of text on every slide in a presentation?  Neither do investors!  Make it stand out.  Sell yourself.  Sell your business.  And, most importantly, stand out.  That’s the best way for you to make an impact and turn your vision into a reality.  It would be too easy if we all had startup capital in our bank accounts.  Fortunately for you, your plan will make that a reality.

Let’s have a great week and finish our plans Viking Strong!