I’ve been regularly volunteering and I’ve decided to share some of the not so obvious benefits. Two reasons I’m sharing in this post are improving small talk and practicing punctuality.
Introduction
I have really been remiss in updating this blog. I have about 7 draft blog posts that I’ve started and just haven’t come back to. In one of them, I have something like, “Time has been really relative since 2020.” Ain’t it the truth!
Well, one thing about this blog is that I’ve really moved away from blogging about tech, which was one of the original purposes of this blog. Actually, a big reason was to document projects for a Master’s program. But lately, I’ve found more interest and joy in writing about things related to the arts and culture, and my life in general: movies, museums, etc.
For this post, I wanted to write about something that has become a regular part of my life: volunteering, which I started doing a lot last year.
When I talk about it with other people, they typically say something like, “That’s great!” But truthfully, down inside, I always cringe a little bit. Not because they aren’t right. Volunteering is great — but sometimes I feel like my motivations for volunteering aren’t really all that generous and altruistic. In fact, sometimes they feel a bit selfish.
I’ve been thinking a little bit about the reasons I volunteer and what I get out of it. I decided to list some of the not so obvious reasons that volunteering provides that aren’t just doing nice things for other people. (I will share some obvious reasons, eventually!)
I initially planned to share all of my reasons all at once, but I’ve found that with more to write about, there are more opportunities to re-read and edit. This just delays publishing. So I’ve decided to share them one at time, or maybe more, so I can think about each part in more depth.
Joys of volunteering: reasons 1 – 2
Reason 1: Improve your small talk
Most of the time when I volunteer, it’s with people I’ve never met and often won’t meet again. Each project or session date is about 2-4 hours. I find it’s much more pleasant to introduce myself and get to quickly know the people I’ll be working with than to keep quiet and not say anything to anyone.
The most common topic we often talk about is asking each other if we’ve participated in the activity before. If the activity is outside, we might talk about the weather. Once, another participant had a T-shirt with a well-known logo, so I asked her about her shirt. Another person might mention their spouse, kids, pets, or their neighborhood and that leads to conversation. Or maybe we comment on the work itself.
Sometimes, the activity involves serving other people, like working with seniors or kids. This is also another chance to talk with people who are different from you and find ways to connect. I’ve learned that seniors and the differently abled are really the same as everyone else, but the way they express themselves is different because of their cognitive or physical differences.
Repeatedly volunteering has been a really good way to practice small talk and learn how to break the ice. I feel more comfortable making small talk now than before.
Reason 2: Practice punctuality
I am a card-carrying tidsoptimist. This means I tend to overestimate how much time I have or underestimate how much time a task takes, so it can lead to lateness or maybe a task takes longer to complete than I initially estimated.
Although my time optimism is in my nature, its not good to be late all the time, especially when meeting with other people. I made it a point in 2023 and in 2024 to focus on my punctuality. Not only to improve how others saw me, but also to shut up that voice in my head that berates me for being late all the time.
Part of my solution for this has been to make early morning doctor or dentist appointments and volunteer for activities that start early. It’s been an excellent motivator for me because…who wants to be late to a soup kitchen?
I’m someone who signs up for different activities vs picking the same one over and over, so the volunteer activities have occurred all over the city. Sometimes more than an hour away. I’ve learned to plan ahead by actually mapping out the route ahead of time rather than assume I know the route. So far, my plan is working. I recently joined a volunteer activity that had an 8:45 AM start time!
And I made it. Go me! Here’s a nice photo from that day.
Tree blossoms on Governor’s Island, the location of a recent volunteer activity that started at 8:45 AM.
In summary, reasons 1 and 2 are improving small talk and practicing punctuality. Check back again for additional reasons to volunteer and, if you’re so motivated, get out there and volunteer!
In Arlan Hamilton’s book, “It’s About Damn Time”, she shares a list of 17 songs that help her feel empowered.
I was recently reading Arlan Hamilton’s book, It’s About Damn Time: How to Turn Being Underestimated Into Your Greatest Advantage. In Chapter 2, Part 6, she included tips she’s found helpful when she’s about to give a speech or a talk. The tips are to help combat imposter syndrome and other normal feelings of insecurity. Her first tip 1 is to listen to songs of empowerment and she shared her list of songs. I decided to write the list down and give the songs a listen, and see if her songs empowered me.
Rather than hunt down audio tracks, I searched YouTube and created the list below.
Well, I don’t know how empowered I feel after this list, but I still think this is a great exercise. I should come up with my own list and see what I can create. It would be nice to have a list to listen to before work or any time I want to feel a little push.
There’s more to be found about Arlan Hamilton, her book, and her venture capital firm, Backstage Capital, at itsaboutdamntime.com.
From January 12-25, 2022, The Jewish Museum and Film at Lincoln Center are delighted to continue their partnership to bring you the 31st annual New York Jewish Film Festival, presenting films from around the world that explore the Jewish experience.
Thanks to the magic of the internet, I got to attend this festival online for the first time. Thanks to work schedules and whatnot, I only watched 3 films. Despite my love of film festivals, yet limited film viewing, I was quite impressed with how many films, and even TV shows, there were to experience.
One thing I neglected to do was watch and pay attention to all of the Q&As. Usually Q&As follow film screenings, when they’re held in person, so all you have to do is remain in your seat. This time, I was just happy I was able to make time to watch the films.
Anyway, here are the 3 films I watched, in the order I watched them, plus some additional thoughts and details about the films.
With No Land (2021)
In May 1991, 15,000 Ethiopian Jews were airlifted to Israel in less than 24 hours’ time. Known as Operation Solomon, this covert mission coordinated by the Israeli military saw the birth of eight babies en route and set the world record for the most passengers on a single aircraft. History regards the endeavor as an unqualified triumph, but 30 years later, the full story is being told. Aalam-Warqe and Kobi Davidian delve into the details that have been suppressed for all this time, and explore the desperate but motivated measures taken by Jewish Ethiopian activists in Israel, North America, and their country of origin. Archival footage and firsthand accounts of participants lend nuance to a story heretofore viewed as black and white, supplemented by accounts of recent efforts to finally relocate to Israel those whom Operation Solomon left behind.
I’m not sure I knew much about the history of these events prior to watching the film. Although the summary of the film is about the 1991 airlift, much of the film goes into events that happened prior to that — about the Ethiopian Jews who had been allowed into Israel earlier than 1991, how families were split up, how some were reunited — and how Israel refused to accept Ethiopians despite their religion.
There was also a historical account of the political and military situation within Ethiopia, and how other countries and NGOs explicitly or secretly cooperated with the plans to relocate Jewish Ethiopians. Some had fled to Sudan while others remaining in Ethiopia were stuck between two fighting contingents — which seem to have renewed their conflict recently, again, if it ever went away.
But a very interesting film and I’m glad I learned more about it. There is definitely more information about Operation Solomon to be found online.
Click through to watch the first-hand account from someone who, at age 11, was airlifted out of Ethiopia as part of Operation Solomon. The witness describes his experience, and also talks about issues of assimilation between his and his parents’ generation.
Cinema Sabaya (2021)
Nine women of divergent backgrounds enroll in a video production seminar that promises to teach the fundamentals of filmmaking. These residents of Hadera, Israel are Jewish and Arab, observant and secular, ensconced in all manner of domestic arrangements, with life spread out before some of them and regarded by others in hindsight. Strangers to one another (one of the Jewish attendees has never interacted with Arabs until now), the students share the common goal of self-expression through their cameras, with Tel Aviv–based filmmaker Rona (Dana Ivgy, acclaimed star of Or and Zero Motivation) supplying instruction. Orit Fouks Rotem casts her debut feature with a mix of seasoned and nonprofessional actors, all shooting their own footage and viewing their colleagues’ work for the first time on screen. Sparked by former workshop leader Rotem’s personal experiences, Cinema Sabaya presents a deft and never didactic portrait of art’s capacity to unite disparate communities.
Cinema Sabaya, clip (2:21) Other Israeli Film Festival (The official trailer is Unlisted on YouTube.)
The description seems provocative, like maybe this will be a story about Arabs and Israelis. Instead, the story was much more about the lives of the women, how free they felt at expressing themselves, and the support they gave each other while revealing sensitive aspects of their lives.
For instance, one of the Israeli women seems at first grating and displays, maybe, this “toxic positivity” I’ve been reading about. She seems overly positive, very smiling…until she reveals that she hasn’t really interacted with an Arab person. She said, during the suicide bombings in Israel (before the wall), she crossed the street whenever she saw an Arab person. Later, during the course of sharing her filming assignments, it turns out her home life is not as positive as she appears to be. Her husband is withdrawn, likely suffering from PTSD. Her daughter doesn’t want to engage with her, and so forth.
Another woman tells the group she has had to move herself and her children back in with her mother after leaving her husband. Her dream is to buy an apartment. During one of her video assignments, it’s revealed that she and her kids are living in a single bedroom with all the stuff she was able to grab when she quickly left her husband. It’s a very crowded and cramped room, and clearly not a place where she or her children can thrive.
In another instance, a Muslim Arab woman, with 6 children, shares her dream of getting a driver’s license so that she doesn’t have to rely on her husband so much. Later in the film, the group role plays and acts out scenes where they pretend they’re confronting someone in their life about whatever dream they have. This woman plays herself and another woman plays her husband, and seems to accurately portray his dominant role in their marriage and her life. The Muslim Arab woman essentially gives up the argument when her partner declares, role-playing her husband, that he has decided she doesn’t need a license and he’s made up “his” mind. The rest of the group tries to encourage her to continue and just pretend, and to say what she feels even if she wouldn’t say it in real life. In a cathartic moment, she reveals that she regrets ever meeting her husband or marrying him at all. She reveals that she hates that he touches her, hinting at sexual aggression within the marriage. It’s clear she holds in her feelings of contempt for her husband. When the other woman tries to push her a little bit, to “give her courage”, the Muslim Arab loses her composure and attacks the woman by pushing her down, and then runs out of their community center. She disappears for the next few sessions, only to reappear on the day when they receive their completion certificates.
I felt it was a very interesting story about the motivations and, not spectacular, but plain dreams of women, and how their wants are withheld or thwarted often by the men in their lives or by expectations for women to support or be the center of the family.
Shtetlers (2020)
An invaluable record of tight-knit communities that endured genocide and shifting political regimes, Shtetlers offers a glimpse at the small Jewish towns (“shtetls”) dotting the former Soviet Union—towns where for many years Yiddish continued to be spoken and ancient rituals dutifully observed. Located on the fringes of the territory, in what are now Ukraine and Moldova, these villages that withstood the Holocaust managed to abide by supplying non-Jewish neighboring towns with goods and services. Director Katya Ustinova examines nine former shtetl inhabitants, now spread out across the world, and solicits their memories of a resilient but ultimately vanishing way of life. Ustinova’s documentary serves as an elegy for these once numerous strongholds of tradition and culture, but also, by archiving the recollections of those who experienced them firsthand, preserves them.
For this film, I did watch the Q&A, because I started writing this before the film expired for my account. And I got to hear a little more about the background of the film. Sadly, I learned everyone in the film has passed away, except for one person. (Most of the people were elderly and I believe it some of the footage goes back to 2015.)
On a positive note, the director revealed that there was Instagram account for the film, with additional animations and video not used in the film, so there’s more film to explore.
As I mentioned above, it was my first time participating in this film festival. I think Film at Lincoln Center tends to host many types of film festivals, so I’ll try to pay more attention from now on.
There seemed to be something like 30 films, both online and in-person. The festival must have been fairly popular because many of the online films sold out or expired before I could watch them.
The line-up of online films seemed like a really nice mix. For instance, they had at least one option of short films (“Shorts”), which I often enjoy, but I didn’t watch any this time.
Anyway, definitely recommend watching any of the three films above, if the chance arises. In the meantime, I’ll take note for next year’s festival and onward to the next!
Title: Breakfast with Anish Melwani, Chairman & CEO of LVMH Inc (North America), In Conversation with Author Erwan Rambourg
Date: Wednesday, November 3, 2021
Description: In a thought-provoking conversation with author Erwan Rambourg (Future Luxe: What’s Ahead for the Business of Luxury, 2020), Anish Melwani will discuss the ever-increasing demand for iconic luxury goods in the United States.
Speakers:
FIAF biography overview for Anish Melwani, Chairmain and CEO of LVMH for North America, and Erwan Rambourg, the author of Future Luxe: What’s Ahead for the Business of Luxury (2020).
Discussion
In the early part of the talk, Melwani talked about his own background. Prior to his role at LVMH, he admitted he had not worked in luxury/prestige previously.
On creativity: He talked about his first meeting with Marc Jacobs (the actual person), and being blown away by the creativity he witnessed. He said compared to his previous experience at McKinsey, the creativity at LVMH was off the charts.
On the state of Luxury in North America: More customers are now shopping from home, leading to more access to shopping in smaller markets.
On the organization of LVMH: LVMH is decentralized, focused on Maisons (houses). That’s what makes it work — or it works despite these “inefficiencies”.
Creativity and competition at LVMH: Each Maison competes with each other to drive innovation and creativity. That’s what compensates for “inefficiencies”. From a conglomerate perspective, it would make more sense to consolidate the Maisons. But from a creative perspective, it doesn’t.
Was anything missing from LVMH? The interviewer or someone in the crowd asked if LVMH was missing anything. I don’t recall how this question ended in an answer on cosmetics or skincare, but I learned that LVMH owns Fenty skincare and Fresh. He talked about the wines and spirits division (perhaps in the context of recent acquisitions). And he mentioned that LVMH had acquired hotels and other properties via Belmond.
Fenty: A few points
Prior to this event, I did not know Fenty was part of LVMH.
He mentioned the fact that Fenty debuted with 40 shades of foundation, which was completely unheard of at the time due to being inefficient from a sales perspective because some shades sell out more than others. However, although this is the case, the point, he said, was to show the customer that they were seen (emphasis mine).
He also shared a comment from one of Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty shows — something about how customers can really see themselves on the stage/
The visibility, he said, is what leads to the idea of prestige. (Or something like that.)
Fenty came out of Kendo, an incubator in LA, specific to Sephora.
Fenty does well in the US, which is more diverse compared to Europe.
Personal side note regarding Fenty: Although they may have released 40 shades, and many of those shades don’t sell as well as others, I have had much difficulty finding foundation shades in my skin color — foryears. Colors are either too red/orange, too dark, too light…if they exist at all. They recently released a new product, Eaze Drop, a blurring skin tint. It’s extremely popular. My shade, #10, has been out of stock for MONTHS. It seems to me there is some business sense in creating these in-between shades.
As he correctly mentioned, an NFT is an address on a blockchain.
Events & Experiences
There is a high-demand for events, and demand for experiences is increasing. But what he’s not sure of is if there will be larger events in big cities, or many smaller events.
Using digital can help spread the experience around, which is kind of the traditional model. But he’s not sure what the model will be in the future, given technical advances and demand, etc.
My Questions
As I was watching online, I wasn’t able to ask questions directly. The online viewers weren’t encouraged to add questions to the Zoom Q&A. But if I had been given the opportunity to ask questions, I would’ve asked this:
Leather/Fur: Seems like attitudes are changing about fur and meat, of which leather is a by-product. Any thoughts about that?
2nd-Hand Market: I didn’t have a specific question, but I was generally curious about the 2nd-hand market.
Final Thoughts
This was a really well-done, live online event. I didn’t get screenshots, but below each presenter were names and titles to describe what they did. It was really professional.
The only downside was sometimes when audience members would stand and ask questions, they sometimes begin speaking before getting the microphone. This happens at almost every event, with audience goers believing that since the people presenting and those around can hear them, the microphone picking up the event can also hear them. It cannot. Thankfully, FIAF corrected this very quickly right after one person began speaking.
I hope they produce more webinars like this again. Part of why I could not attend is because it was at 8:30AM, which is too inconvenient for me to go to and return home in time for work. Also, 8:30AM is pretty early. 🙂
Anyway, it was informative, produced very well, and very worthy of my time. I hope they do more morning series like these.
A report I created for an edX course, from July 2021. The exercise was an analysis on the pros and cons of a potential franchise opportunity.
For the course Introduction to Marketing, from the University of Edinburgh, from which I received a verified certificate in July 2021, I analyzed the potential benefits of a franchise as part of an assignment in Week 6: Delivering value and reaping the rewards.
I wrote this post in July to document my assignment.
Verified certificate from Intro to Marketing, from the University of Edinburgh.
Instructions
The aim of the report is to make recommendations on whether or not to enter a franchising agreement with the selected firm.
Your report should be structured as follows:
Executive summary – Introduce the report aim as well as summary of your research.
Advantages of franchise – List benefits deriving from franchising agreements.
Disadvantages of franchise – Identify challenges related to franchise.
Recommendations – Make recommendation whether it is beneficial to enter franchising agreement or not.
The instructions also specified the report should be 1 page. I went over the limit by writing 2 pages, which I don’t necessarily think is a good thing. Succinct writing has its place. Perhaps I should’ve spent more time editing. On the other hand, I did find enough interesting information to fill 2 pages. So, here is my report.
Executive Summary
This short report evaluates and recommends whether beginning a franchise opportunity with Century 21, a real estate franchisor, is a beneficial investment.
In summary, only the most experienced, well-researched, and well-funded potential franchisees should consider a franchise agreement; only those already working in real estate with a successful business of their own should consider, as the risk and costs can be quite high.
Introduction
From their website, Century 21 (C21) claims to enhance your existing “entrepreneurial spirit” with:
Global Exposure
Comprehensive Training
In-Market Support
#bestinclass Marketing
The Scale and Buying Power of a Global Partner
Here is an examination of a few of these enhancements:
Advantages
Comprehensive Training: C21 offers their 3-4 day “International Leadership Academy (ILA) Program”, at or near their HQ in New Jersey, USA, or another location of their choice. C21 will continue to offer continuing training opportunities in the form of written materials, email, consultation, or other means. They may also hold networking events or other educational opportunities.
Global Exposure: The C21 website says they operate in 80 countries and territories.
#bestinclass Marketing: This appears to refer to the use of C21 branding materials as well as working with their real estate -focused, marketing affiliates, such as advertising placements on real estate websites (“Homes.com”, “realtor.com”, etc). They also have a customer relationship management system and access to a PR studio. Here is what Century 21 says about their new brand identity: With a refreshed color palate that stays true to our iconic gold and black scheme, the new identity is more modern and distinctive than ever.
Additional Advantage: Competition. C21 will not grant another franchise location within a ¼ mile radius (402 meters) of another office.
Disadvantages
Comprehensive Training: Training may not be free and could cost up to $2,200; additional training costs depend on the course and duration. Training must also be completed within 24 months of signing the franchise agreement. In addition, there are many sources of training related to real estate — Is the training offered by C21 high-quality or independently recognized?
Global Exposure: It’s really up to the franchisee to open an office in these locations. Each franchise operator will need pay attention to local real estate laws — regulations and laws can very widely across countries, territories, states, cities, and other jurisdictions.
#bestinclass Marketing: It’s not clear if access to marketing resources would be free of charge to any franchisee. Initial investment fees can be quite high for external signs ($800-$20,000), yard/open house signs ($2,000-$20,000), computer equipment and electronic data system ($5,000-$10,000), and other advertising ($0-$10,000). Ongoing use of the CRM is tentatively included, however their Lead Management System and other computer support could cost up to $5,000/year and $1,000-$2,000/year, respectively.
Costs: There are relatively high costs and requirements involved in the franchise agreement, such as maintenance, royalties (6%), the requirement of a guaranty by the franchisee and their spouse (even if the spouse is not involved), and other fees. The franchisor is not obligated to provide financing for the franchisee, though they may choose to do so. Initial estimated fees to start an office could range between $106,000-$456,750. A franchisee may also consider the services of an attorney and/or an accountant, and may want to look into insurance, and related to remain in compliance with real estate laws and taxes. It’s not clear if these costs are standard or unusual compared to other real estate franchisors.
Neither advantage nor disadvantage
Licenses and Regulation: Real estate is a highly regulated industry. If a franchise owner is not a licensed broker, they must retain a “responsible broker” who must comply with all applicable laws and regulations. The broker will need to go through their own training to obtain their license.
Terms: Each franchise is offered an initial term of 10 years. There are no renewal rights, though they may extend under different terms.
Recommendation
Depending on the location, it may be worthwhile to go into a franchise agreement. Some real estate markets could offer high enough returns to offset the costs related to fees, royalties, maintenance and upfront costs. For others, there may not be enough demand, or the demand for homes may not be consistent enough to justify costs. It would be up to the franchisee to do their own research to understand the potential and return of their desired market before getting into a franchise agreement with C21. In addition, the owner should have some knowledge of the rules and laws for their geographic location, to remain in compliance with the law.
[Choosing to franchise] is an option only for the most experienced, well-funded, and well-researched franchisee, probably already involved in the real estate market and potentially already a licensed broker of many years. Others should get more experience in real estate, in their area, before entertaining a franchise option.
So, there you have it! The findings are that franchising can be a good idea if you’re already experienced, know your market, and have the money to invest (or lose). But for new brokers, it not might be worth the investment until they’ve gained more experience.
Thoughts about the exercise
This was an interesting exercise. I liked the structure and the positives and negatives. It wasn’t as difficult as I might have thought to learn more about this franchise option. And in the end, making a recommendation was easier than I thought; the answer seemed obvious.
A few thoughts on the course
[Nov 2021] At the time I originally wrote this post, I’m not sure I was planning to pay for the certificate. It wasn’t my first marketing course. I decided to pay for the course because the lessons I learned kept popping into my head — particularly the importance of innovation and staying differentiated from competitors. I decided to get the certificate because I felt the lessons of the course were valuable enough to justify the purchase.
For my final Capstone project in a specialization course on Coursera, I completed a SWOT analysis. The full assignment was to select a business or organization and conduct a SWOT analysis. Specifically, we were to choose one item identified in the weakness or threats analysis and propose a solution. The final project was to create a 10-15 minute presentation, with the idea that it would be presented to executives at the company. For my SWOT analysis, I decided to analyze Netflix.
Why I Chose Netflix
Netflix is one of the most valuable US tech companies right now. In addition to that, I have been aware of their Culture memo, first published in 2009, which emphasizes a “treat employees like adults” approach to management, including as a “keeper test” approach to retention. I really wanted to dig deeper into this. My theory was that although Netflix’s (stock) seems to flourish with this approach, my intuitive sense was that there was more to it than that.
I was also once a Netflix DVD + streaming customer, from about 2006 to 2012. I completely quit Netflix in 2017. And Netflix has become the “N” in the list of FAANG workplaces tech workers supposedly aspire to join. Having had these experiences with the company, I was happy to find an opportunity to evaluate their business in a structured way.
I intended to include my full report here. Unfortunately, I felt there were a number of students plagiarizing other students’ work, writing suboptimal reports, or having an essay writer complete their project. For that reason, I won’t include my full report to avoid that fate. But I will include snippets from my main submissions.
The Assignment
The entire assignment was meant to be put together in six weeks, include the SWOT matrix, report, and presentation. The audience for each section was meant to be executives from the company, so everything should be written as though it were going to be presented to C-Suite executives.
An overview of the 3-part assignment is below. Following that, I have included snippets from each section.
Part 1: SWOT Matrix
A 1-page visual presentation of the SWOT analysis. (We could use a template supplied by the course, as well as our own software or tools, which is what I did.)
Part 2: Report
The report should be 7-10 pages, “(double-spaced with 12 point font and 1 inch margins)”. The report should consist of four distinct sections:
Introduction: Introduction and content setup.
Description: SWOT analysis. Visual should be included.
Discussion: Select one problem identified in the SWOT analysis and propose a solution.
Conclusions and Recommendations: Recap key findings and proposed recommendations.
Part 3: Presentation
“Create a 15-20- minute presentation to senior management…to enhance and reinforce your audience’s understanding of the most important points in your written report.”
Part 1, The Report: Weakness Identified and Proposal
The full requirements were to write a 7-10 page, double-spaced report about your chosen company. My analysis revealed that in contrast with their competitors, they only have one income stream. I proposed offering online courses that represent their values as a way to seek secondary income.
Identified Weakness: Only one type of income stream or business offeringProposal: Offer Online Courses that Represent their Values
Part 2, SWOT Matrix: Weaknesses
Based on my research, I identified the following weaknesses:
Netflix SWOT Matrix: Weaknesses
Part 3, Proposal Presentation
My proposal was related to internal training. I’m only including a few slides from my presentation, which I created in Google Slides using a presentation template I’ve used in the past.
Table of contents for presentationFrom the proposal section.Recommended steps, from the conclusion.
Project Outcome
Well, I really do wish I could share my final SWOT matrix, report, and presentation. I worked hard on it and I’m really happy with how it turned out.
But, as I mentioned, due to rampant plagiarism, I don’t feel comfortable putting up any work. I suspect there will be people using my work anyway.
In any case, my reviewers gave me full marks on my final submission. The rubric includes points for:
Integrates and incorporates many practices, concepts, methods and techniques found in Career Success Specialization coursework.
Reflects extensive use of company research to provide considerable insight into the organization.
Demonstrates a thorough understanding of how SWOT analysis works.
The target problem chosen is well-defined and clearly stated.
Demonstrates considerable ability in applying a logical approach to finding a creative solution.
Information and ideas presented are consistently and critically analyzed, synthesized and well-supported.
The report is well-written, with exemplary use of logic, organization, flow, style, and mechanics to conform to good business English formats and practices.
The presentation slides reflect effective use of content, structure, textual and visual graphics to convey the intended message.
I got 3 points for each rubric item. 3 is the maximum.
One person left this feedback, “This was by far the best project I have graded. Well done!” So that’s nice.
Although I kind of wish I’d selected a different font for the report, I think the best way to conclude this is to say, Yay for me! 🙂
