SBANC Newsletter
November 15, 2005
Issue 398-2005
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QUOTE
"Everyone experiences tough times, it is a measure of your determination
and dedication how you deal with them and how you can come through them."
--
Lakshmi Mittal
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FEATURE PAPER
Learning From Failure: Hard Lessons On
Launching New Technologies For Old Markets
This paper was presented by Timothy P. Keane of Rockhurst University at the USASBE
19th National Conference held January 13-15, 2005.
Abstract
The case study
tracks the trials and tribulations of a new venture launched to
provide
leading
edge, vertical market software in an established industry. The
experiences of the protagonists in
the case validate long held theories, concepts and models that
inform the study of
entrepreneurship, most important of which is the need to research
and assess the environment
(both macro and micro) before launching a new venture.
The learning from the case of Entrada Technologies provides a compelling
example of the need
for entrepreneurs to clearly understand the environment into which
they are planning to launch
any new venture, particularly one targeted at an industry dominated
by complex information
technology supply chain. This start up software company learns
some very hard lessons when
the owners assume that they can be successful with a product that
provides elaborate
functionality to a market that demands the basics. Technical integration
with disparate,
customized backend systems, reliance on hardware that changes faster
than Moore’s Law
estimates, and a supply chain with little tolerance for low margins
are just some of the barriers
exacerbating this new venture’s problems.
Background
Entrada Technologies began operations with the launch of
an order management software
application for vertical markets, which was designed to run on mobile
computing hardware
known as “pen tablets.” With the pen tablet hardware,
a field sales rep could navigate the
computer screen using a stylus rather than a mouse, and use advanced
software applications to
enter data while in retail outlets. At the time of the company’s
launch, the pen tablet hardware
was the first generation of devices that enabled field sales reps
to enjoy full screen Windows
functionality while away from their desktop PC back at the office.
Mobile access to Windows’
advanced feature set through the pen tablet hardware represented
a significant productivity
improvement opportunity for organizations that relied on a mobile
sales force to create orders
and manage their product inventories in retail outlets.
Entrada’s
initial software offering that ran on the pen tablet hardware was
trademarked the
Virtual Cooler, because it enabled sales reps in the beer industry
to view a graphic representation
of their products, in addition to a standard text view. With the
Virtual Cooler software, beer
industry sales reps simply used the stylus for their pen tablet
hardware to “tap” the graphic image
of their products on the hardware screen, and then enter their
order quantities. The Virtual Cooler application also allowed sales
reps
to collect other information while visiting retail
customers, such as product inventories and competitive pricing
data.
Read the Entire Paper...
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CONFERENCES
Association
for Global Business
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Who:
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Association for Global Business |
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What:
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Seventeenth International Conference
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Where: |
Wyndham
Miami Beach Resort in Miami Beach, Florida |
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When:
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November
17-19, 2005 |
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The Association to
Advance Collegiate Schools of Business
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| Who: |
The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of
Business (AACSB) |
| What: |
Graduate
Programs Conference, Undergraduate Conference, & Emerging
Curricula Conference
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| Where: |
Tampa, Florida |
| When: |
November 18-20, 2005 |
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IPSI
- 2005 Slovenia
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| Who: |
Internet,
Processing, Systems, and Interdisciplinary (Research) |
| What: |
IPSI
BgD Conference
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| Where: |
Hotel Toplice Bled, Slovenia |
| When: |
December
8-11, 2005 |
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International Business
Information Management Association
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| Who: |
International Business Information
Management Association |
| What: |
5th IBIMA Conference
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| Where: |
Cairo, Egypt |
| When: |
December 13-15, 2005 |
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CALLS FOR PAPERS
Conference
Organising Committee
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Who:
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Conference Organising Committee |
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What:
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The International Conference on the Arts in Society |
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Where: |
The University of Edinburg in
Scotland |
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When:
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August 15-18, 2006 |
Submission
Deadline:
November 30, 2005
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The CIBER Research Institute
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| Who: |
The CIBER Research Institute (CIBER) |
| What: |
ABR Conference (business & economics) and TLC Conference (teaching
methods, styles, and administration
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| Where: |
Disney Boardwalk Hotel in Disney World, Florida |
| When: |
January 2-6, 2006 |
Submission
Deadline:
December 1, 2005
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Institute
for Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management
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| Who: |
Institute for Entrepreneurship and
Small Business Management |
| What: |
8th
International Conference, "STIQE"
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| Where: |
Maribor , Slovenia |
| When: |
June 28-30, 2006 |
Submission
Deadline:
January 10, 2006
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International
Council for Small Business
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| Who: |
International Council for Small Business (ICSB) |
| What: |
51st World Conference
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| Where: |
Melbourne, Australia |
| When: |
June 18-21, 2006 |
Submission
Deadline:
January 15, 2006
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Schlegel
Center for Entrepreneurship
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| Who: |
Schlegel Center for Entrepreneurship
(FERC) |
| What: |
2006 Family Enterprise Research Conference (FERC)
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| Where: |
Sheraton on the Falls in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada |
| When: |
April 28-30, 2006 |
Submission
Deadline:
January 31, 2006
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TIP OF THE WEEK
New Study Examines Cost of Litigation to Small Business
Litigation hurts
small business in more than just financial ways, a new Advocacy study
has found. Since most small business owners are personally
invested in their businesses, the toll of being sued also includes
substantial emotional hardship and changes in the way the business
operates.
Chief Counsel for
Advocacy Thomas M. Sullivan released the study at the
U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform's Legal Reform Summit.
The Impact of Litigation on Small Business was written by Klemm
Analysis Group with funding from the Office of Advocacy. The study
used a sample
from the federal Public Access to Court Electronic Records system
to identify small businesses involved in litigation from July 2002
through
June 2003. Data was gathered from a subset of businesses interviewed
by phone, and focus groups produced specific case studies that
were examined in detail.
The study found
most of the participants had to recoup their litigation losses by
cutting expenses or by
having to expend even more funds
in a search for more customers. These costs were absorbed by
the business
because increasing prices was seen as a competitive disadvantage
and used as a last resort. The complete report can be found on
Advocacy's
website at www.sba.gov/advo/research/rs265tot.pdf
| "New
Study Examines Cost of Litigation to Small Business." The
Small Business Advocate Nov. 2005: 6. |
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ANNOUNCEMENTS
The Journal of Diversity
Management
A
new journal, The
Journal of Diversity Management (JDM), is seeking
manuscript submissions. JDM welcomes articles in all
areas of business and economics. Both theoretical
and applied
manuscripts will be considered for publication. Theoretical manuscripts
must
provide a clear link to important and interesting business topics
as they relate
to diversity issues in business and organizations, both domestically
and internationally. Current information is available at www.CluteInstitute.org.
Complete
details for accepted manuscripts are given in the “Style
Guidelines For Accepted Manuscripts” found inside the rear cover
of the JDM.
International Marketing and Terrorism Preparedness
Click here to
view Michael R. Czinkota's Congressional
testimony on International
Marketing and Terrorism Preparedness.
Newsletter Correction
In
last week's newsletter, we incorrectly identified the authors
of the Feature Paper.
"You
Ought to Keep Good Records and Use Them in Management Decisions"
was written
by Dorothy Davis and Paul Dunn of The University of Louisiana
at Monroe. The paper was presented at the 2005 Association
of Small Business and Entrepreneurship (ASBE) Conference in Albuquerque,
New Mexico.
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The SBANC Newsletter
is provided as a service to the members of our affiliates: Academy
of Collegiate Marketing Educators (ACME), Association for Small
Business & Entrepreneurship
(ASBE), Decision Sciences Institute (DSI), Federation of Business
Disciplines (FBD), International Council for Small Business Congress
(ICSBC), Institute
for Supply Management, The International Small Business Congress
(ISBC), Marketing Management Association (MMA), Small Business Administration
(SBA), Service Corps of Retired Executives, Small Business Institute
(SBI), Society for Marketing Advances (SMA), United States Association
for Small Business & Entrepreneurship (USASBE), U.S. Department
of Veterans Affairs and Western Decision Sciences Institute (WDSI).
If you are interested in membership or would like further information
on one of our affiliates, please see our web site at http://www.sbaer.uca.edu
SBANC STAFF
Main Office Phone: (501) 450-5300
Dr. Don B. Bradley III, Executive Director
of SBANC & Professor of Marketing
Direct Phone: (501) 450-5345, E-mail: donb@uca.edu
Esther Mead, Graduate Research, E-mail: esthermead@gmail.com
Ashley Ford, Development Intern, E-mail: ASHatsbanc@hotmail.com
Olivia Johnson, Development Intern, E-mail: reneeatuca_2003@hotmail.com
To subscribe or
unsubscribe to the SBANC Newsletter, please E-mail SBANC at sbanc@uca.edu |
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