Spotlight A

How have the costs of entrepreneurship changed over the past decade? What does this mean for the future of entrepreneurship?

It has decreased. Computing software and social media allow things to be done at a much cheaper rate. I think the future will hold much more competition. The convenience at a lower cost will persuade more to join. We are in the Golden Age because we have such great resources to use like social media.

Which is the better basis for competing-operational effectiveness or strategic positioning? Why?

True strategic positioning means that a firm has created differences that cannot be easily matched by rivals. Innovation is most valuable when organizations "insulate" themselves from competitors by making their offerings rare and tought to imitate. Resources such as brand, scale, network effects and switching costs help create this needed separation. Without these barriers in place, an endless arms race of operational effectiveness will develop.

What valuable things did the hackers steal in these breaches?

-The Equifax hackers accessed the data for 143 million people around the world. The data included addresses, Social Security numbers, tax IDs, driver licenses, credit card numbers, and more.-The Target breach compromised the credit card information of roughly one-third of the companies customers during the 2-week span it was active. -Also, even though the money didn't exactly change hands, the hackers essentially stole directly from these companies in the form of reputation, future businesses, stock price, etc.

Is a firm that competes based on the features of technology engaged in operational effectiveness or strategic positioning? Give an example to back up your claim.

Assuming that the features can be replicated, firms competing based on features alone are likely to be engaged in operational effectiveness. The automotive industry is an example of an industry that relies heavily on operational effectiveness because features such as power steering, antilock brakes, and tire pressure sensors can be easily duplicated

Venture Capitalist Ben Evans, who works with Andreessen....

Apple would not exist without handheld computing power. Not only is it the company, but I am sure a lot of company work is completed from it. It is a great opportunity and threat. A lot can be accomplished anywhere rather than being stationed.

How do recent changes in computing impact consumers? Are these changes good or bad? Explain. How do they impact businesses?

Changes in computing have in recent years increased significantly and are proving to be positive for consumers. The more advance we get the more affordable it is for businesses to access it and save costs which in return lower the price for consumers as well. Computing impacts businesses in the sense that they have information and more tools that help them be more effective. For example, now cloud computing has come into play and is increasingly becoming sophisticated, yet affordable to businesses of all ranges from small, non-profits, to big corporations.

Would a similar business work in your neighborhood?

Depending on the market conditions, a business similar to FreshDirect's may or may not work in a neighborhood like mine. If real estate is not prohibitive, which promotes lower prices and wider selection, and lifestyles are not frenetic, their model might not gain traction. In some areas, grocery stores shopping is a social experience.

What effect did Fresh Direct have on traditional grocers operating in NYC?

FreshDirect drove one-third of New York City grocers out of business within five years of launch by undercutting competition by as much as 35%. The reason for this was that FreshDirect was operating on a large scale and they offered more choices to customers at lower prices. Many of the other grocers could not match this.

If you were the type of consumer who uses these firms, would what you know about these breaches change your attitude about dealing with these firms?

Knowing about these events at the time they occurred, and the incompetence that allowed them to happen, definitely kept me from considering these 2 companies in the short-term. However, I've noticed that it is usually past victims of these kinds of crimes that end up with the most rigorous control measures in the long-term.

Why do law enforcement agencies struggle to cope with these types of computer crimes?

Law enforcement agencies dealing with computer crime are increasingly outnumbered, out-skilled, and underfunded. Many agencies are staffed with technically weak personnel who were trained in prior eras crime-fighting techniques. Governments can rarely match the pay scale and stock bonuses offered by private industry. Organized crime networks now have their own R&D labs and are engaged in sophistical development efforts to piece together methods to thwart current security measures. -In short, they are outmatched and under-resourced.

What is strategic positioning?

Performing different activities than the rivals, or the same activities but in a different way.

What is operational effectiveness?

Performing the same tasks better than the rivals.

How is social media impacting firms, individuals and soceity?

Social media has an impact on firms because millions of people throughout the world use them, and it has become a venue through which companies can reach their target market all over the world. Sites like FB and Twitter have reached populations of whole countries in users and when firms market through them they have a better outcome. Individuals and society are also impacted by social media in the fact that with a touch of a button they can be connected to the world and hundreds of people around them. Furthermore, people and society can put virtually any injustice they see or event that is going on around them online almost instantly

What factors enabled the hackers to breach target and Equifax?

The 2017 Equifax hacking scandal was a result of a known vulnerability within the open-source Apache Struts framework; combined with their slow response and failure to perform basic maintenance. Equifax had the ability to patch the well-known problem almost 5 months before the hacking breach, but failed to do so-The 2013 Target situation was similar to Equifaxes, except there were mixed results from the companies internal controls. It is believed that hackers used the credentials of one of the Targets third-part access partners to access its network, which was severely lacking in barriers, and installed malware designed to steal customer credit card information. However, even after the hacker's successful infiltration, Targets breach-detection software actually did its job and sent two internal alerts. These alerts were not only ignored by the Targets security team, but they had also disabled the systems ability to automatically detect the threat, enabling the malware to steal customer information for almost two weeks.

What are the dangers of competing only on operational effectiveness? Be sure to describe and discuss how consumers make decisions when evaluating products that are highly similar.

The danger of competing on operational effectiveness is that it leads to "sameness". It is usually not sufficient enough to yield sustainable dominance over the competition. As a result, firms become more likely to be considered commodities. Consumers likely base their decision on the strategic differences between the firms.

Examine Fresh Direct model and list reasons for its competitive advantage.

The following are reasons for FreshDirect's competitive advantage: -It offers a good selection at lower prices -Labor costs are 60% lower than conventional grocery stores due to highly efficient worker shifts -The firm has a higher inventory turn-Artificial intelligence software is used to support everything-The firm saves energy costs through several energy-efficient practices -FreshDirect is able to cut costs by negotiating favorable terms with suppliers.

What kind of skills do todays managers need that weren't required a decade ago?

Well, there are skills that managers need today like understanding computing and technology in general. Since the computing and technology fields are advancing quickly it is essential that managers be familiar on how to use new systems.

Who should have been responsible for these breaches, that is how do you think the firm could have presented the attacks and what should they do in the future to heighten security...

While both companies networks had flaws within their automated internal controls, the biggest culprit in both cases was human inaction after receiving alerts to a known vulnerability (Equifax) or an existing breach (Target). Both organizations need to make an investment in the human aspect of their IT security departments and have strict protocols in place for how to react to similar alerts.