Bradford School of Management - Assignments

ASSESSED COURSEWORK
UB Number(s) 14028465
Module Leader Professor Stuart Roper
Module Code MAN 4059M
Module Name CORPORATE MARKETING
Title of Coursework (please provide
whole question)
One of the difficulties of managing
corporate marketing in the 21st
Century
is that the organisation does not have
control of the corporate reputation in the
way it may previously have done. Why is
this and what are the consequences for
reputation management?
Word count (not including bibliography
and appendices)
1125
Date of submission 19/06/2015
Statement of Authenticity:
By submitting this assignment through Blackboard, I confirm:
• That this work is my own and that I have not plagiarised the work of others in
any form whatsoever.
• That I am aware of the University’s definition of Plagiarism and understand
how it can be avoided.
• That this work, or any part of it, has not been previously submitted to the
University of Bradford for assessment in any other module.
• That I have read and understood the information provided below.
Signed …………………….…………… Date ………………………………..

PLAGIARISM
Plagiarism is the copying or acquiring of the work of others and, directly or indirectly, claiming it to be your
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If there are any specific issues relating to plagiarism and or Turnitin please contact the relevant Module
Leader or your Personal Academic Tutor.

Over the past decades, we have all been witness to the technological progress that
has and still is taking place at cruising speed. Nonetheless, this development goes
hand in hand with many different constraints, among which we can highlight public
affairs such as growing concern about privacy with regard to online institutions and
services (Lee, 2014) and intrusive government surveillance (Froomkin, 2000), and
also business matters, in reference to new market mechanisms and, in most
particular, information and communications.
If one looks at online site’s information distribution, 83% of webs include commercial
content (Lawrence & Giles, 1999), which gives some idea of the massive
bombardment to which the average citizen is subjected as well as of the
phenomenal amount of information senior managers have to deal with. Historically,
many authors have tried to assess information’s influence on institutions (Wurman,
1989) and companies (Girard, J. and Allison, M., 2008), giving birth to a concept
known as information anxiety. Wurman defined information anxiety as “not
understanding information; feeling overwhelmed by the amount of information to be
understood; not knowing if certain information exists; not knowing where to find
information; and knowing exactly where to find the information, but not having the
key to access it”. This gives rise to some practical issues that will help understand
the difficulty of controlling a company’s information made public, as well as
managing its corporate reputation and internal information flow: on the one side, an
increasing number of information channels and a growing amount of data together
with an expanding business competitiveness and a globalized economy. On the
other side, a general public, puzzled due to uncertainties regarding what information
is truthful and what is not.
Wilson (2001) explains that information overload occurs when “the extent of
perceived information overload is sufficiently widespread within an organization as to
reduce the overall effectiveness of management operations”. This is even harder at
a time when digital data keeps growing exponentially and records are stored in the
cloud, requiring new management methods, with all that implies in terms of
operating (The National Archives, 2011).
In this connection, corporate marketing is a particularly challenging field, since a
company’s image is a precious but volatile asset. Even if some fields of reputation
management, such as crisis communication, have been addressed, there is no
established methodology to manage the whole area (Augustine, 1995; Benoit,

1995). And even though crisis management has been studied the most, we find
many examples of crisis mismanagement, as in the case of BP (The Economist,
2013) and Toyota (Victor L. Heller, John R. Darling, 2012). The truth is that there is
still little evidence on how stakeholders react to a company’s deteriorating image in
time of crisis, as well as its image in a normal situation (Dean, 2004). It gives us a
glimpse into the complicated world of corporate management.
Different authors have used a variety of arguments and measures to manage
corporate reputation. Binneman (2002) has a preference for emphasising and
publicising the positive aspects, internally and externally, as well as counteracting
negative statements. It is equally important to be watchful and to monitor what
people think (Oliver Koll, Sylvia von Wallpach, and Maria Kreuzer, 2010). Some
authors have highlighted the importance of a strong culture as way to improve
performance (Kotter and Heskett, 1992; Maxham III, J.B. and Netemeyer, R.G.,
2003). As a general matter, internal audits are of upmost importance (Ian I. Mitroff,
Christine M. Pearson and L. Katharine Harrington, 1996; Protiviti, 2012). In any
case, authors such as Christensen and Askegaard (2001) caution that it is risky to
forget that the primary audience of all “organizational communication and branding
efforts” is the employee. The relationship between this and the stakeholders is
crucial, probably as effective as “traditional marketing communications”(de
Chernatony, 2002).
But more than anything else, the key as a future tool is knowing how to control
internal information flow, how to prevent information leaks beyond company gates
and how to monitor third-party content (media coverage and social media), taking
into account that most part of the information stakeholders get comes from the mass
media and the internet (Carroll and McCombs, 2003). Usually, a poor corporate
reputation comes from a misalignment between the stakeholder’s knowledge and
expectations and the perceived image. It is necessary to establish a comparison
based on a common standard (Reichart, 2003). Both the expected and the
perceived images come from the communicated image (Balmer & Soenen, 1999).
And it is clear enough that it is not possible anymore to have full control over it. The
democratization of the access to information has highly contributed to the global
market development but simultaneously it has dramatically increased the quantity of
necessary informative and economic efforts to reach all those markets and
therefore, the quantity of information to handle and control. The paradox here is that
the bigger the company, the more impossible it becomes to exercise control.

Indeed, everything points to the fact that as time goes on, more and more digital
information will be in circulation. According to EMC (2014), up to 40 percent growth
per year over the next decade. This is translated into a scenario where
unpredictability is the heart of the matter, rewarding high tolerance for uncertainty
and frustration and the capacity to adapt to change (Sennett, 2006). At the same
time, employees need to develop the sense of belonging to the company, “being
passionate about the company, its brands, and their jobs” and “live the brand” (Keller
& Richie, 2006). Employees should be viewed as extensions of the company,
fundamental elements of the corporate image, since they have first hand information
that could be used to speak positively or negatively about the company.
Concurrently, monitoring systems such as digital continuity (The National Archives,
2011) will gain prominence, with the aim of facilitating control and management of
the data. Although CMOs, also known as Chief Simplifier Officers have existed for
some time, Forbes (2014) jokes that soon CSOs will be joining marketing boards:
“Chief Simplicity Officer, responsible for control of needless excess in all its forms”.
In this fast-paced industry, the ability to sift out the most important information and
managing the critical one will make a difference. Digital universe is expected to keep
moving forward at an accelerated rate and therefore, it will become necessary for
managers to master not only corporate marketing but social media mechanics. In
addition, the level of involvement of each employee will evolve to become a lifestyle,
where the company influences the employee’s identity, using him/her as a tool to
support the company’s image outside working hours and in every aspect of daily life.
And of course, more and more, corporate management in global business will be
accompanied by global problems, which will require global solutions.

References
A. Michael Froomkin (2000), “The Death of Privacy?, Standford Law Review, Vol.
52:1461, pp. 1482-1484.
Augustine, Norman R. (1995), “Managing the Crisis you tried to Prevent”, Harvard
Business Review on Crisis Management, Harvard Business School Press, pp. 1 –
32.
William L. Benoit. Albany (1995), “Accounts, Excuses, and Apologies: A Theory of
Image. Restoration Strategies”, NY: State University of New York. Press, pp. 197
Balmer, John M. T.; Soenen, Guillaume B. (1999), “The Acid Test of Corporate
Identity Management™, Journal of Marketing Management”, Volume 15, Numbers
1-3, pp. 69-92.
BINNEMAN, D. (2002), “Analysis: Protecting organisational reputation: Your role!”
Ethical Corporation Magazine.
Carroll, C.E., McCombs, M. (2003), “Agenda-setting effects of business news on the
public's images and opinions about major corporations”, Corporate Reputation
Review, pp. 36–46.
Christensen, L.T. and Askegaard, S. (2001) “Corporate identity and corporate image
revisited”, European Journal of Marketing, pp. 292–315.
Christine M. Pearson, L. Katharine Harrington (1996), “The Essential Guide to
Managing Corporate Crises: A Step-By-Step Handbook for Surviving Major
Catastrophes”, Oxford University Press.
Dean, D.H. (2004) “Consumer reaction to negative publicity: Effects of corporate
reputation, response, and responsibility for a crisis event”, Journal of Business
Communication, 41, pp. 192–211.
Girard, J. and Allison, M. (2008), “Information Anxiety: Fact, Fable or Fallacy.” The
Electronic Journal of Knowledge Management Volume 6 Issue 2, pp. 111 - 124
Kotter, J. P., and J. L. Heskett (1992), “Corporate Culture and Performance.” New
York: The Free Press.
Lawrence, S., & Giles, C. L. (1999), “Accessibility and distribution of information on
the Web”, Nature, 400, pp. 107-109.
Mark Chong (2007), “The Role of Internal Communication and Training in Infusing
Corporate Values and Delivering Brand Promise: Singapore Airlines’ Experience”,
Corporate Reputation Review 10, pp. 201–212.

Maxham III, J.B. and Netemeyer, R.G. (2003) “Firms reap what they sow: The
effects of shared values and perceived organizational justice on customers'
evaluations of complaint handling”, Journal of Marketing, 67, pp. 46–62.
Oliver Koll, Sylvia von Wallpach, and Maria Kreuzer (2010), “Multi-Method Research
on Consumer–Brand Associations: Comparing Free Associations, Storytelling, and
Collages”, Psychology & Marketing, Vol. 27: 584–602.
Protivi (2012), “Assessing Risk: A Strategic Perspective”, Board Perspectives, Risk
Oversight, issue 30.
Richard Sennett (2006), “ The Culture of the new capitalism”, Yale University.
Reichart, J. (2003) 'A theoretical exploration of expectational gaps in the corporate
issue construct”, Corporate Reputation Review, 6, pp. 58–69.
The National Archives (2011), “Information Assets and Business Requirements”,
Version: 1.2, pp. 1-6.
Victor L. Heller, John R. Darling, (2012) "Anatomy of crisis management: lessons
from the infamous Toyota Case", European Business Review, Vol. 24 Iss: 2, pp.151
– 168.
Wilson, T. D. (2001), “Information overload: implications for healthcare services”,
Health Informatics Journal, 7, pp. 112.
Wurman, R. S. (1989), “Information anxiety”, New York: Doubleday.
Kevin Lane Keller, Keith Richey (2006), “The importance of corporate brand
personality traits to a successful 21st century business”, Journal of Brand
Management 14, pp. 74–81.
Articles
EMC, “Executive Summary”
http://www.emc.com/leadership/digital-universe/2014iview/executive-summary.htm
Forbes (2014), “Why business needs a chief simplicity officer”
http://www.forbes.com/sites/victorlipman/2014/01/20/why-business-needs-a-chief-
simplicity-officer/
Konsbruck Robert Lee (2014), “Impacts of Information Technology on Society in the
new Century”
http://www.zurich.ibm.com/pdf/news/Konsbruck.pdf
The Economist (2013), “Think before you speak”
http://www.economist.com/blogs/schumpeter/2013/07/corporate-crisis-
mismanagement

ASSESSED COURSEWORK
UB Number(s)
14028465
Module Leader
Dr Simon Kelly
Module Code MAN 4001M
Module Name
Managerial Leadership
whole question)
Do you think that “women have to
demonstrate male characteristics in order to
succeed as leaders and must set aside
defiminine qualities”? Make use of the module
reading Höpfl and Matilal (2007) and draw on a
range of perspectives and debates to support
answer.
and appendices) 1648
Signed …………………….…………… Date ………………………………..

Throughout history, up until now, the feminine figure in the social context has taken
a whole range of shapes and forms. From nomadic tribes and later matriarchal
societies to nowadays patriarchal and class-based societies, in almost all countries
around the world.
There is a strong belief, deeply embedded in the collective consciousness that
women are somehow too weak to lead or at least weaker than men. Whilst many
authors have immersed themselves in this obscure and complex phenomenon, only
its outer layer has been peeled and no elements of evidence have been provided to
show that women’s characteristics related to gender prevent them from competing
effectively. Leadership itself remains unexplained and so does women leadership.
More specifically, the purpose of this article is to navigate through the existing
bibliography to get light into the darkness of women leadership. The relevant
literature has been reviewed to underline the main approaches that contribute to the
debate.

“To handle yourself, use your head; to handle others, use your heart”.
Eleanor Roosevelt
Assuming Höpfl and Matilal’s (2007) approach, women lack inherent skills and
capabilities to be leaders. It is only when they adopt male attitudes that effective
leadership can exist. References to the lack of a phallus as an irreplaceable element
are an example of biological approaches. Indeed, these have been widely adopted
to strengthen the belief that our biological makeup can in fact “predict” the degree of
success of each individual in tackling concrete challenges, and moreover, of each
gender.
The issue has been extensively discussed, as has already occurred in the past with
the already familiar academic discussion regarding the relation between
testosterone and violent behaviour. Despite what many assume, authors such as
Mazur and Booth (1998) note that “there is little empirical support for these popular
assertions. […] because research literature is not conclusive. But it is already clear
that there is no simple one-to-one relationship between testosterone and machoism
or aggressiveness or sexuality”, and Katherine Simpson (2001), who states that
“testosterone is significantly correlated with certain forms of aggression in a number
of animals, although firm evidence is lacking for humans”.
It is obvious that gender differences exist, but that does not concern us here. The
point is the focus on the feminine gender as a source of restrictions and limitations
regarding the exercise of leadership. In this regard, little evidence has been found in
support of the bond between innate characteristics and leadership. Although there
has always been strong disagreement among scholars, there is no scientific
evidence at all. As Lombardi (2009) claimed, “leaders are made, they are not born.
They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve
any goal that is worthwhile”.
In other words, if the characteristics of the leader are acquired and not innate
(William Gentry, Ph.D., Marilyn Vojta, among others), in what ways, exactly can
gender biological differences affect that learning process? Do women lack concrete

mechanisms or talents preventing them from learning how to provide adequate
leadership?
It is a certain fact, as was observed by Höpfl and Matilal (2007), that women have
adopted masculine patterns, not only at global level but also within the organisation.
This has also been stated by different authors, such as Mary Nash (2008) and
Horowitz G. & Kaufman (1989), although it is important to point out that roles are
ultimately a social construction (Ellen Hardy & Ana Luisa Jiménez, 2001). Western
feminism has always studied and criticized the fact that the liberation of women
would never be complete as long as it was based on the adoption of masculine
roles. In this connection and according to Höpfl and Matilal (2007) there seems to be
a role-switching mechanics within the organisation, “so women are to be rewarded
for being honorary men whereas men are expected to be more expressive and
sympathetic, to acquire what are traditionally regarded as feminine values”.
Notwithstanding, leadership differences seem to be very clear for some other
authors, none of which contemplates role switching: “men are more willing to bluff to
competitors, distributors, and their own company” (Guidice, Alder, & Phelan, 2009)
and “neurological evidence corroborates that women have a higher activation of the
mirror neurons when assessing the emotions of others” (Schulte-Ruther,
Markowitsch, Shah, Fink, & Piefke, 2008). In addition, women seem to react in a
more emotionally intense way (Harshman & Paivio, 1987). Their approaches do not
contemplate men adopting feminine roles.
In a nutshell, it does not seem possible to attribute women’s lower success rate to
biological reasons. Indeed, even when gender differences are evident, there can be
no assurance that the capacities associated to the feminine gender are less effective
when it comes to leading. As a demonstration, history has given us many examples
of leading women, such as “Jeanne D’Arc” (Irene Beaudry, 2000) and “Cleopatra”
(Paul Vanderbroeck, 2012).
As a matter of fact, the big labour gap between genders, such as the pay gap
(European Commision 2013; Francine D. Blau and Lawrence M. Kahn, 2000) is
perfectly understandable by looking at women’s social situation during the last
centuries. There is no real need for a pure biological approach. On the other hand,
some authors (Apfelbaum & Hadley, 1988) distinguish between public and private
sectors, noting that “the continuing failure of women to move en masse into positions

of political leadership compared to their somewhat better success in the private
sector may be due to the fact that women were granted the right to work before they
were granted the right to vote”. This social-driven point of view has been broadly
accepted (Sara Motta, Cristina Flesher Fominaya, Catherine Eschle, Laurence Cox,
2011; Karen Offen, 1988, among others) and it is certainly correct to say that the
historically disadvantageous situation of women is one of the key elements that
explain the current situation, as fruit of the legacy received.
According to Keaveny, Jackson & Fossum (1976), “…women executives reported
they had suffered from discrimination”. Several obstacles have to be faced by
women in managerial positions, such as “reluctance to send women travelling with
men” (Donelly, 1976). Turning to the issue on social constructions, Bernard M. Bass
(1981) notes (trough Carroll, 1987) “that the biggest obstacle that women leaders (at
least the married ones) face is coping with the conflict between career and family”.
Chartered Management Institute & Women in Management argue that “increasing
the representation of women in management positions also requires a focus on
developing the skills and aspirations of girls at a younger age, which may help
translate girls’ academic success into better career outcomes.”
Conversely, Höpfl and Matilal (2007) make the counter-argument that “this fear of
women and the supposed disorder they bring remains a crucial element in
understanding the role of women leaders. The fear of women and their ability to rob
men of their potency has a long history and plays a key role in psycho-analytical
theories of male sexuality.” In this case, particular reference is made to
psychoanalytical theories, such as Freud’s, who firmly believed that one of the basic
feminine traits was masochism. But as Paula J. Caplan points out (1985), “for
instance, a women who is underpaid but stays in her job may do so because high-
paying Jobs are hard for women to get, because she likes her boss and co-workers,
or a host of other reasons-not because she enjoys being underpaid”.
The authors claim: “whenever women demonstrate these traits, they are
congratulated on showing their mettle, on being male, in effect, they are given the
status of honorary man. This is achieved via a annihilation of the feminine.” or “the
acquisition of the metaphorical penis (Höpfl, 2003), and the ability to show one has
balls”. These principles meet the spirit of the Freudian psychology: fighting for the
control of the territory as it is observed in the animal kingdom, where the leading
male is called alpha. A woman can never win that game.

This procedure forces women to adopt changes in a environment dominated by men
but this does not lead us to the conclusion that women’s characteristics are
inappropriate. It simply means that women are in a much weaker position due to the
fact that the rules are made by men and for men. Therefore, women’s input is
traditionally valued less than men’s. The fact that the labour gap is decreasing is
understandable to some degree if we consider women’s rights progress as directly
proportional to their integration into positions of leadership.
For all these reasons, there seem not to be particular indications that women are
less able to fill positions of power, leading effectively. In addition, even if it is not
simple to establish, it appears that there is no evidence to suggest gender biological
differences are behind the current imbalance in the number of men and women in
positions of leadership. In contrast, subjection and oppression of women throughout
history does have unequivocal influence. Again, social conventions have a decisive
impact on the way women are discriminated. The generalized idea that women have
to be in charge of the household and children places them in a precarious situation.
With the passage of time, rules are changing and in contrast to what it might appear,
women’s leadership styles are gradually replacing men’s, which is why it is
foreseeable that a more balanced situation will be reached over time. It is equally
reasonable to believe that over time women leaders will transform leadership in
organisation, as the number of women in executive positions keeps growing. As
Helen E. Fisher says, “men and women are like two feet—they need each other to
get ahead. Nevertheless, the world is changing in ways that can profit from women’s
skills as well as those of men”. Albert Einstein hit the mark when he said that “the
significant problems we face today cannot be solved by the same level of thinking
that created them.”

REFERENCES
Bernard M. Bass – (1981) – “Handbook of Leadership: theory, research, and
managerial applications” – The Free Press, 3rd
ed. – pp. 707-712
Lindsay Harold, Kerri Anton, Kristen Duca, Cate Henefin - - “The Influence of
Context on the Leadership of Cleopatra” - ULR Volume II Issue I - pp. 27-34
Irene Beaudry – (2000) – “The Military Genius of Jeanne d’Arc, and the Concept of
Victor” - Phoenix Mill, U.K.: Sutton Publishing - Volume 27, Number 45 – pp. 64-69
Sara Motta, Cristina Flesher Fominaya, Catherine Eschle, Laurence Cox – (2011) –
“Feminism, women’s movements and women in movement” - a journal for and about
social movements Editorial Volume 3 (2) - pp. 1-32
Karen Offen - (1988) – “Defining Feminism: A Comparative Historical Approach” –
Chicago Journals - Signs, Vol. 14, No. 1 - pp. 119-157
Chartered Management Institute & Women in Management – (2013) – “Women in
Leadership” – White Paper – pp. 7-9
Ellen Hardy & Ana Luisa Jiménez – (2001) - “Políticas y Estrategias en Salud
Pública” - Rev Cubana Salud Pública - 27(2) – pp.77-88
Mary Nash – (2004) – “Mujeres en el mundo. Historia, retos y movimientos” -
Barcelona, Alianza editorial.
Francine D. Blau and Lawrence M. Kahn – (2000) – “Gender Differences in Pay” -
The Journal of Economic Perspectives - Vol. 14, No. 4 - pp. 75-99
European Union – (2013) - “Tackling the gender pay gap in the European Union” -
Publications Office of the European Union – pp. 10-13
Marilyn Vojta, M.A. – “Characteristics of the Effective Leader” – TargetYou,
Consultants in Human Performance Management
William Gentry, Ph.D., Jennifer J. Deal, Ph.D., Sarah Stawiski, Ph.D., and Marian
Ruderman, Ph.D. – (2012) - “Are Leaders Born or Made? Perspectives from the
Executive Suite” - Center For Creative Leadership – pp. 4-14
Katherine Simpson – (2001) – “The Role of Testosterone in Aggression” – MJM -

2001 6 – pp. 32-40
Alan Booth, Douglas A. Granger, Allan Mazur and Katie T. Kivlighan - (2006) –
“Testosterone and Social Behavior” - The University of North Carolina Press, Social
Forces, Volume 85, Number 1 – pp. 180-195
Heather Höpfl Sumohon Matilal – (2007) – “The lady vanishes: some thoughts on
women and leadership” - Journal of Organizational Change Management, Vol. 20
Iss 2 - pp. 198 – 208
Acker, Joan - (1992) - "Gendering Organizational Theory", n/a, Gendering
Organizational Analysis, Newbury Park: Sage Publications Ltd – pp. 248- 260
Maree V. Boyle & Amanda Roan – (2009) – “Special and wise: The paradoxical
nature of the representation of women in management” - Griffith Business School
Griffith University Nathan Campus – pp. 3-11
Schulte-Ruether, M, Markowitsch HJ, Shah NJ, Fink GR, Piefke M - (2008) –
“Gender differences in brain networks supporting empathy”, - Neuroimage 42(1) –
pp. 393–403.
Rebecca M. Guidice, G. Stoney Alder & Steven E. Phelan – (2009) – “Competitive
bluffing: An examination of a common practice and its relationship with performance”
- Journal of Business Ethics 87 (4) – pp. 535 -553
Harshman, Richard A.; Paivio, Allan – (1987) – “Paradoxical" sex differences in self-
reported imagery” - Canadian Journal of Psychology/Revue canadienne de
psychologie, Vol 41(3) – pp. 287-302
Jackofsky, Ellen F.; Peters, Lawrence H. – (1983) – “Job turnover versus company
turnover: Reassessment of the March and Simon participation hypothesis.” - Journal
of Applied Psychology, Vol 68(3) – pp. 490-495
Paula J. Caplan – (1985) – “The Myth of Women's Masochism” Dutton Books - pp.
49-50
Karen Offen – (1988) – “Defining Feminism: A Comparative Historical Approach” -
Signs, Vol. 14, No. 1 - pp. 119-157

Horowitz G. & Kaufman M. – (1989) – “Sexualidad masculina: hacia una teoría de
liberación.” In: Kaufman M (Ed.). Hombres: placer, poder y cambio. República
Dominicana, Centro de Investigación para la Acción Femenina.
Paul Vanderbroeck – (2012) “Cleopatra: An Example for Modern Women Leaders?”
- Leadership through the Classics - pp 323-337
Lombardi, V. (2009). Brainy Quote.
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/v/vincelomba151247.html

ASSESSED COURSEWORK
UB Number(s)
14028465
Module Leader
Dr Shahid Rasul
Module Code MAN4016M
Module Name
Entrepreneurship
whole question) Individual Case Study
and appendices) 1680
Signed …………………….…………… Date ………………………………..

PLAGIARISM
Plagiarism is the copying or acquiring of the work of others and, directly or indirectly, claiming it to be your
own independent and original work. This is what the University of Bradford policy on academic integrity
says about plagiarism:
“A dissertation, thesis, essay, project or any other work which is not undertaken in an examination room
under supervision but which is submitted by a student for formal assessment must be written by the
student and in the student’s own words, except for quotations from published and unpublished source,
which shall be clearly indicated and acknowledged as such…”
If you copy work for assessment, it defeats the whole purpose of the exercise. When work that you have
copied is marked it is not your progress that is being evaluated but that of somebody else. And if it is
someone else’s work, the feedback you receive will not help you improve your own potential.
Plagiarism is an issue that the University of Bradford takes very seriously and is treated as a form of
Academic Misconduct (or cheating).
There are four main forms of plagiarism:
1. Copying or using another person’s work, including the work of another student (with or without their
consent), and claiming or pretending it to be your own;
2. Presenting arguments that use a blend of your own and the directly copied words of the original
author, with or without acknowledging the source;
3. Paraphrasing another person’s work, but not giving due acknowledgement to the original writer or
organisation publishing the writing, including work on Internet sites;
4. Colluding with other students and submitting identical or near identical work.
However it is very important that you are aware of Self-Plagiarism. This is described in a document called
“What is Academic Misconduct” which is available on the Legal and Governance website.
You must not submit the same assignment, or the any part of that assignment, as the assessment for two
modules, nor should you “cut and paste” large sections of work from one submission into another. You can
refer to your own work (whether submitted for another module or published elsewhere) but you must
acknowledge this by citing the original work, just like any other source that shapes your own work.
How to avoid plagiarism:
Applying, analysing, criticising or quoting other people’s work is expected of you and is perfectly
acceptable providing you always:
1. Attempt to summarize or restate in your own words another person’s work, and give
acknowledgement to that person. This is usually done by citing your sources in the text of the assignment
and presenting a list of references at the back ; or
2. By always using quotation marks (or indenting lengthy quotations in your text) to distinguish between
the actual words of the writer and your own words. Once again, you would cite all these sources in the text
straight after the quote and present full details of these in your list of references.
Using Turnitin:
You must be very careful to ensure that your submission is free from Plagiarism before you submit it. All
submissions are made electronically via Turnitin which is a piece of software that is able to identify “non-
original” content within a submission. When you submit your work it is matched to previously submitted
work both at the University of Bradford, on the web and work submitted to other Universities across the
world. You will be presented with an Originality Report which will highlight any non-original content in your
work.
You are permitted to submit a draft version of your work to Turnitin before the final submission deadline.
This will allow you to see the Originality Report for the draft and to address any issues that the report
identifies. The report can take a few hours to generate, so give yourself sufficient time to receive and
examine the report and to be able to work on your submission as necessary before the deadline passes.
It is essential that you understand what is expected and how plagiarism can be avoided.
The university provides a great deal of resources to help students understand their responsibilities.
Information about these services is available at the LSS workshop site.
If there are any specific issues relating to plagiarism and or Turnitin please contact the relevant Module
Leader or your Personal Academic Tutor.

“Success
is
not
final,
failure
is
not
fatal:
it
is
the
courage
to
continue
that
counts.”

Winston
Churchill

There
is
a
widespread
idea
that
if
one
wants
to
succeed,
there
is
no
better
place
to
be

than
the
place
where
success
is.
Some
countries
concentrate
hi-‐tech
production
and

some
others
compete
in
the
area
of
tourism.
London
gathers
the
greatest
number
of
FDI

transactions
(Kotkin,
2014)
and
Vienna
can
be
proud
to
be
the
ageless
capital
of
Music.

Certain
corners
of
the
planet
appear
to
attract
global
talent.
That
is
the
case
with

fashion:
no
one
can
compete
with
New
York,
Paris
and
London.
Every
designer
who

wants
to
succeed
dreams
of
these
cities,
in
the
same
way
software
developers
aspire
to

be
members
of
the
Silicon
Valley
community.
It
is
rare
when
a
great
idea
developed

ignoring
market
logic
transcends
the
world.
There
is
a
strong
belief,
deeply
embedded

in
the
collective
consciousness
that
there
is
only
one
way
to
go.
Entrepreneurs
are
often

precisely
the
exception
rather
than
the
rule.
The
cases
of
Amancio
Ortega
and
Mark

Zuckerberg
are
widely
known:
they
did
not
follow
the
established
rules
but
that
did
not

stop
them
from
funding
two
empires.
The
purpose
of
this
article
is
to
go
into
a
much

more
modest
case,
which,
nevertheless
truly
exemplifies
the
nature
of
the

entrepreneur.

Mikel
Feijoo
holds
a
B.A.
in
History
from
the
Public
University
of
Basque
Country.
After

graduating,
he
moved
to
London
in
search
of
opportunities,
without
a
clear
idea
of
what

he
wanted.
As
usual
in
such
cases,
he
was
obliged
to
accept
every
type
of
work:
low

wages
with
which
he
travelled
extensively.
As
time
went
on,
Mikel
began
to
purchase

certain
leather
clothes
and
items
he
could
sell
in
Basque
Country.
Once
he
saved
enough

money,
he
opened
his
first
store
in
his
hometown
Guernica,
back
in
1992.
The
truth
is

that
he
never
considered
himself
to
be
a
fashion
lover
before
but
he
had
already

accumulated
knowledge
and
sales
skills
and
he
was
not
surprised
to
be
very
passionate

about
designing.
He
began
to
turn
his
eyes
towards
those
who
were
knowledgeable
in

the
subject,
as
he
designed
his
first
own
clothes.
He
would
also
make
modifications
to

partly
completed
military
garments.
He
presented
his
first
collection
in
1996,
around

different
music
festivals.
Given
the
good
overall
acceptance
of
his
first
collection,
he

started
to
work
with
his
friend
Luis
Alberto
Gandarias,
graduated
in
business
studies

and
they
signed
the
German
designer
Anika
Schmitt,
setting
up
the
team
and
giving

birth
to
“Skunkfunk”.
As
a
new
century
arrived,
Skunkfunk
opened
its
first
store
in

2000.
They
decided
to
commercialize
a
mixture
of
their
own
clothes
and
third
party

clothes,
implementing
a
sustainable
strategy
and
remaining
true
to
the
origins:

exclusive
clothing
packed
in
a
cosmopolitan
brand.
Little
by
little,
the
company

achieved
sustained
growths,
marking
a
turning
point
in
the
history
of
the
Basque

Country.
Indeed,
the
company
has
become
the
flagship
of
the
region’s
fashion
industry.

Therefore,
it
is
accurate
to
describe
Mikel
as
an
entrepreneur,
due
to
his
high
degree
of

creativity
together
with
the
solid
network
he
managed
to
create.
It
is
clear
that
he
is
not

a
person
that
fears
challenges.
Mikel
proved
to
be
an
“independence-‐seeker”
or,
as

described
by
some
authors,
he
has
a
high
“need
for
autonomy”
(Hornaday,
1970,
1971;

Vesper
1990).
At
the
same
time,
his
“tolerance
for
ambiguity”
is
equally
high
(Begley,

1987).
His
“risk-‐seeking”
or
“risk
taking
propensity”
is
high
as
well
(Meyer,
1961;
Liles,

1974).
On
the
other
hand,
Mikel
shows
a
great
propensity
to
“opportunity-‐seeking”,
as

well
as
for
an
“intuition-‐driven
attitude”.
His
“autonomy
level”
is
obvious,
since
he

opened
his
first
store
on
his
own
and
he
did
not
begin
to
collaborate
until
Skunkfunk

was
legally
registered.
And
finally,
he
falls
within
the
definition
of
“Internal
Locus
of

control”
(Perry,
1986;
Lorrain,
1988).

But
the
story
of
the
successful
entrepreneur
took
an
unexpected
turn
years
later.
An

aggressive
expansionist
policy
had
required
a
considerable
financial
effort
and

Skunkfunk
entered
into
losses
with
the
onset
of
the
economic
crisis.
Unquestionably,

fashion
industry
is
shaped
by
a
highly
competitive
scenario,
where
the
margins
of

manoeuvre
are
exceedingly
narrow.
The
fashion
arena
has
proven
to
be
a
minefield,

marked
by
a
vivid
price
war.
Logistics
has
proven
to
be
one
of
the
key
factors
leading
to

cost
savings
but
that
implies
that
significant
investments
have
to
be
made
to
achieve
a

competitive
position.
Skunkfunk
could
not
resist
the
pressure
and
had
to
enter
into
an

insolvency
procedure,
which
lead
to
the
dismissal
of
18
workers.
In
fact,
Mikel
Feijoo

himself
recognizes
that
the
decision
came
too
late,
among
other
reasons,
because
of
his

“inability
to
put
his
people
out
of
work”.
This
shows
how
“wealth-‐seeking”
has
never

been
one
of
his
characteristics.
Moreover,
his
market
positioning
seemed
to
have
lost

touch
with
the
worsened
economic
reality.
The
company
kept
opening
stores
while
the

demand
decreased
and
economy
contracted,
especially
in
Spain.

Despite
all
the
problems,
Skunkfunk
has
survived.
It
has
reorganized
its
corporate

structure,
absorbing
some
of
its
distributors,
reducing
salaries
and
fixing
pricing
more

adequately.
The
company
has
reached
an
agreement
with
62%
of
its
creditors
and
it
has

come
out
stronger,
being
able
to
afford
a
big
amount
of
humble
investments.
An

expansion
project
is
currently
being
undertaken
to
reach
out
Latin
American
markets.

New
stores
have
been
opened
in
Chile
and
Peru.
This
demonstrates
that
“endurance”

(Hornaday,
1970;
Bellu,
1988)
can
also
be
found
in
Mikel.

Consequently,
in
terms
of
Strategic
Orientation,
he
is
more
like
the
“promoter”
“driven

by
the
perception
of
the
opportunity”.
In
the
same
vein,
he
can
also
be
catalogued
as
a

promoter
in
the
fields
of
Opportunity
Commitment,
Resource
Investment
(probably
one

of
the
reasons
behind
the
slow
response
to
the
company’s
crisis),
Resource
Control

(working
with
third
parties
outside
Skunkfunk),
Management
Structure
(due
to
the

company’s
decentralized
nature,
as
well
as
to
the
capacity
of
each
store
to
manage
a
big

amount
of
issues
autonomously)
and
Reward
Philoshophy
(notably
exemplified
by
the

way
he
used
the
company
to
bring
wealth
and
promote
fashion
in
Basque
Country,

more
than
to
make
a
profit).
Mikel
focuses
on
opportunity,
leaving
the
management
in

the
background,
which
has
also
contributed
to
the
mismanagement
period
during
the

crisis.
Skunkfunk
had
reached
maturity
when
its
poor
economic
performance
forced
the

managers
to
redefine
the
business,
entering
a
stage
of
survival
after
which
the
company

is
now
recovering,
at
the
stage
of
take-‐off.
Mikel’s
role
as
an
entrepreneur
has
changed

along
the
journey:
from
being
involved
in
all
aspects
of
his
business
to
learning
how
to

delegate
and
concentrating
in
management.
On
the
other
side,
he
amply
meets
McGrath

and
MacMillan’s
(2000)
characteristics
that
define
an
“Entrepreneurial
Mindset”.
Mikel

has
also
shown
a
critical
survival
and
growth
instinct.

It
is
a
major
challenge
to
define
the
term
“entrepreneur”.
Some
authors
only
grant
that

privilege
to
those
financially
independent
and
successful
(Perry,
1988).
It
seems
that

the
title
of
“entrepreneurship”
can
only
be
earned
by
being
at
least
a
bit
successful.

Hornaday
(1970),
for
example,
only
considers
entrepreneur
those
people
whose

businesses
last
for
at
least
five
years,
achieving
growth
and
profit
goals.
Nonetheless,

almost
all
authors
agree
to
give
particular
prominence
to
leadership
when
measuring

the
potential
success
of
an
entrepreneur
(Hood,
1993).
In
addition,
Hood
considers

“Finance”
as
one
of
the
most
important
“Business
Knowledge”
to
have
and
“Creativity”

as
the
most
influential
trait
regarding
the
entrepreneur’s
mentality.

In
general
terms,
Mikel
Feijoo’s
figure
as
an
entrepreneur
is
closer
to
Bolton
&

Thompson’s
(2003)
definition
since
it
describes
the
process
on
a
global
scale.
In
fact,

the
same
way
some
talented
workers
find
difficult
to
“be
managers”,
some

entrepreneurs
find
difficulties
precisely
when
an
idea
has
to
be
translated
into
a

business,
which
is
why
it
is
common
to
find
business
partners
advising
and
supporting

the
“more
creative”
work
of
the
entrepreneur,
as
it
was
the
case
of
Skunkfunk.
Feijoo’s

profile
also
fulfils
perfectly
Timmons
(1994)
definition
of
entrepreneurship
as
“the

ability
to
create
and
build
something
from
practically
nothing”.
This
open
definition
is

wide
enough
as
to
include
some
other
traits
more
common
to
business
success,
as
Perry

and
Hornaday
consider.
If
we
look
at
the
entrepreneur
as
a
successful
businessman,
it
is

no
longer
enough
with
being
creative
and
developing
an
idea.
Conversely,
it
is

necessary
to
have
some
success,
which
requires
having
managing
skills
and
business

knowledge
(Lorrain,
1988,
among
others).

In
a
nutshell,
Mikel
Feijoo
fulfils
the
characteristics
or
possesses
the
common
skills
of

an
entrepreneur,
as
different
authors
have
defined.
He
has
the
three
main

characteristics
(need
of
achievement,
internal
locus
of
control
and
risk
taking

propensity)
and
the
five
secondary
characteristics
to
a
greater
or
lesser
extent
(need
for

autonomy,
need
for
power,
tolerance
for
ambiguity,
need
for
affiliation
and
endurance).

Moreover,
the
capacity
to
overcome
Skunkfunk’s
crisis
shows
that
he
also
presents

some
of
the
characteristics
usually
linked
to
a
successful
business
mentality,
as
could

not
be
otherwise
in
view
of
the
success
of
Skunkfunk,
the
company
that
put
fashion
in

Basque
Country
in
the
spotlight
and
that
will
continue
a
pioneer
and
benchmark
in
the

region’s
sector.

I
have
found
the
course
very
interesting.
As
an
entrepreneur,
I
myself
posses
some
of

the
skills
above
mentioned.
During
the
launch
of
“Noizy
Coffee”,
my
partners
and
me

found
difficult
to
take
the
idea
to
market.
In
fact,
it
is
one
of
the
reasons
why
I
decided

to
get
the
EIBM
Master,
looking
to
acquire
some
business
knowledge.
In
my
case,
risk

taking
implied
reinvesting
all
the
money
we
earned
during
the
first
year.
It
is
clear
to

me
that
there
is
an
exchange
of
characteristics
between
entrepreneurial
profiles
and

business
profiles,
meaning
that
it
is
crucial
to
have
a
business
vision
and
to
understand

the
rules
of
the
marketplace.
On
top
of
all
that,
it
has
become
clear
to
me
that
endurance

and
tolerance
for
ambiguity
are
essential
to
sustainable
development
of
the

foundational
idea.

References

Begley,
T.M.
&
D.P.
Boyd
(1987),
“Psychological
characteristics
associated
with

performance
in
entrepreneurial
firms
and
smaller
businesses”,
Journal
of
Business

Venturing.

Bellu,R.
(1988),
“Entrepreneurs
and
managers:
are
they
different?”,
in:
Frontiers
of

Entrepreneurship
Research.

Bolton,
B.,
Thompson,
J.
(2003),
“The
Entrepreneur
in
Focus”,
Thomson:
London.

Hood,
J.N.
&
J.E.
Young
(1993),
“Entrepreneurship’s
area’s
of
development:
a
survey
of

top
executives
in
successful
firms”,
Journal
of
Business
Venturing,
8.

Hornaday,
J.A.
&
C.S.
Bunker
(1970),
“The
nature
of
the
entrepreneur”,
Personnel

Psychology,
23.

Hornaday,
J.A.
&
J.
Aboud
(1971),
“Characteristics
of
successful
entrepreneurs”,

Personnel
Psychology,
24.

Liles,
P.
R.
(1974),
“New
business
venture
and
the
entrepreneur”,
Irwin,
Homewood.

Lorrain,
J
&
L.
Dussault
(1988),
“Relation
between
psychological
characteristics,

administrative
behaviours
and
success
of
founder
entrepreneurs
at
the
start-‐up
stage”,

in:
Frontiers
of
Entrepreneurship
Research.

Meyer,
H.H.,
Walker,
W.B.
&
Litwin,
G.H.
(1961),
“Motive
patterns
and
risk
preferences

associated
with
entrepreneurship”,
J.
Abnorm.
Soc.
Psychol.,
63.

Perry,
C.,
G.G.
Meredith,
H.J.
Cunnington
(1988),
“Relationship
between
small
business

growth
and
personal
characteristics
of
owner/managers
in
Australia”,
International

Small
Business
Management.

Rita
Gunther
McGrath
&
Ian
MacMillan
(2000),
“The
Entrepreneurial
Mindset:

Strategies
for
Continuously
Creating
Opportunity
in
an
Age
of
Uncertainty”,
Harvard

Business
School
Press.

Timmons
J.A.,
(1994),
“New
Venture
Creation:
entrepreneurship
for
the
21st
century”,

Chicago,
Irwin.

Vesper,
K.
(1990),
“New
Venture
Strategies”,
second
edition,
New
Jersey,
Englewood

Cliffs.

Articles

C.
Pareja
(2015),
“Skunkfunk
absorbe
su
negocio
en
Francia
tras
reorganizar
su

estructura
societaria”.
Available
at:

http://www.modaes.es/empresa/20150226/skunkfunk-‐absorbe-‐su-‐negocio-‐en-‐
francia-‐tras-‐reorganizar-‐su-‐estructura-‐societaria.html

Estela
Martínez
Suero
(2006),
“Vestir
con
espíritu
Funk”.
Available
at:

http://elpais.com/diario/2006/01/30/paisvasco/1138653612_850215.html

Kotkin
(2014),
“The
World's
Most
Influential
Cities”,
Forbes.
Available
at:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/joelkotkin/2014/08/14/the-‐most-‐influential-‐cities-‐in-‐
the-‐world/

ASSESSED COURSEWORK
UB Number(s) 14028465
14028617
14028588
14028579
Module Leader
Mr Shahid Rasul
Module Code
MAN4016M
Module Name
Entrepreneurship
whole question)
Group assignment
and appendices)
2498
Date of submission
26/06/2015
Signed …………………….…………… Date ………………………………..

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TASTE NORWAY
Introduction
In order to decide whether or not “TASTE NORWAY” is feasible, the whole
project has been carried out over three main pillars aimed at defining not only
the finality and the objective, but also developing the project itself.
- Analysis of the situation
- Evaluation of alternatives
- Viability (feasibility), technical as well as economical
Whenever a human shortage is given, either real or induced, of a good or a
service there will be necessity to invest, as this is the unique way of producing
such a good service.
Analysis of the situation
Over decades, tourism has experienced a steady and gradual growth and a
huge diversification, achieving the status of one of the economic sectors with
the fastest growth in the world. International (World) tourism is directly related
to economic development, showing an increasing number of both destinations
and business modalities during the last decades, becoming in this way one of
the keys to socio-economic progress.
Nowadays, the business volume of tourism is similar or even higher than those
of petrol exportations, food products or automobiles. It has become one of the
main actors of international commerce and at the same time it represents an
essential source of income for many emerging countries.
The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) predicts and
highlights the following numbers for the international tourism:
Analysis(of(
the(situa/on(
Genera/on(of(
alterna/ves/(
possibili/es(
Viability(of(
alterna/ves(
Evalua/on(
and(decision(
of(alterna/ves(
Detailed(
design(

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- International tourist arrivals in a worldwide scale will grow 3, 3% annually
between 2010 and 2030
- In 2013, international tourism generated around 1.4 billion dollars income
due to exportation
To end up with, the tourism sector is in constant evolution and change,
increasing significantly the tendency of a model of customer that demands an
experience instead of the simple fact of just enjoying the free time. The fusion
between gastronomy, adventure and sport are, in its whole, a booming service
that generates a potential field of market with margin to be exploited.
Generation of alternatives/possibilities
The following criterions have been considered, ordered upon importance, when
analysing the generation of possibilities:
- Political stability of the country
- Potential tourism development in the country
- Barriers to enter
- State financed possibilities
- Infrastructure, logistic and accessibility
Viability and valuation of alternatives
The feasible alternatives to be taken into account and which will be analysed
through the criterions seen before are the following:
1. Scandinavian countries (Norway and Sweden)
2. Scotland
3. Canada
4. Alaska
The final decisions about the country in which the activity will be developed, as
well as the area of exploitation in that country, are given by a consultancy firm

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whose services are subcontracted (…) and which has concluded that the most
valued country to develop the proposed business activity is Norway. Here are
the main reasons to do so:
- Norway maintains its good expectation on the inflation control, the
unemployment and the commercial activity.
- For the next three years, the growth forecast is very positive in Norway.
Government expect that the European and American crisis will not have
a big impact on the country and they will be able to maintain the
unemployment rate very low, the inflation controlled and the growth
positive and moderate.
- Regarding the country risk classification from COFACE, Norway stays in
A1 level.
- Political bilateral relationship between UK-Norway has traditionally been
cordial and friendly, existing a continuous political dialogue in terms of
mutual interest.
- It is a mature market where the concentration of investments and
resources on both gas and oil sectors leave place to market niches in
other sectors, such as the fish farming, the petrochemical sector,
transport infrastructures and the tourism and construction.
- In the last years, due to new regulation system...
- Norway is extremely well communicated through national and
international flights, with more than 50 airports all over the country.
Gardemoen, the airport in the capital city of Oslo, was inaugurated in
October 1998 and is only 50 km north from the capital, while an
extensive train and buses network communicate the airport with all the
Norwegian destinations.

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- Norway has always been synonym to an excellent salmon fishing
opportunity. The season for salmon fishing is short yet thrilling. Normally
it comprises the time between June and September.
- Both the history involved in the old tradition of salmon fishing in Norway
and the amazing surroundings that suppose the fjords in which it is
carried out, together with the possibility of experiencing the self-fishing
are the main factors we believe to success.
Swot

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Objectives and Scope
Offer a combined adventure-tourism and gastronomic program based on the
sustainable Norwegian salmon fishing into the Hardangenfjord fjord, in the area
of Hardanger.
As financial objective, it is expected that the initial investment will be amortized
in the next 6 years.
SCOPE
The adventure tourism refers to a particular kind of tourism within which people
can take part to natural, cultural excursions, in order to step out from their
comfort zone. The adventure tourism can be built on different models:
-Accessible tourism: excursions for people with reduced mobility who can
choose between cultural exploration and extreme activities.
- The ethno tourism: People taking part in this special concept are in contact
with different cultures of the world. This concept implies long journeys in poorly
developed and risky areas. However, companies responsible for these trips
commit to protect people lives and reduce risk factors.
-The tourism of emotion: This concept refers to “high risk” adventure tourism. It
includes activities as rafting, paragliding, hiking, climbing on stone, speleology.
All adrenaline activities are included in this concept. On the other hand, this
modality of tourism is conducted by a Company able to provide good security
measures and to prevent risks.
- The ecotourism: considered as soft adventure tourism, fosters discovery trips
based on exploration of poorly developed natural zones. People can
experiment these zones, with the objective to preserve the unspoilt nature. This

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travelling concept promotes local landowners and householders instead of
luxury hotels, luxury car rentals…contrary to this philosophy.
As part of “Taste Norway” tourism pack, we will focus on ecotourism and
tourism of emotion. We will provide a range of activities of tourism-fishing.
People will live the experience of an authentic marine journey at the heart of
one of the most famous Norwegian fjords in the world, renowned for its beauty,
and for the development of salmon fishery. In addition to this, people will be
able to enjoy a sea trip. They will navigate on an authentic fishing boat, get
familiar with day-to-day lives of local people and enjoy fish markets, as well as
the gastronomy and tourism in a memorable trip.
Business model options
Every working day, a typical Norwegian fishing boat will be available to make
excursions. It will be possible to enjoy all the details of the day-to-day lives of
local people with diverse options to take maximum advantage of the adventure.
The different business options are:
Option 1: A unique boat tour with breakfast and lunch on the fishing boat
Option 2: Have breakfast or lunch on the fishing boat. On the return, possibility
to end the excursion by eating what has been fished that day in any of the
recommended restaurants.
Our competitive advantage will be built on a combination of different factors
making our business model unique and special:
- A pack of unique adventure tourism (ecotourism and tourism of emotion)
- Far from “tourist traps”, our watchwords are: quality, custom and value to
local products. We will privilege the authentic marine local cuisine and
will guarantee the best quality.

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- A great rewarding human experience: We promote exchanges,
interaction with local people and privileged Discovery of traditions,
customs.
In addition to this, Taste Norway has got 2 fishing boats built as typical
Norwegian boats with different capacities. Different options are available for our
customers, including business dinners for companies who will also be able to
enjoy the different activities.
Canvas Business Model
COST ANALYSIS
This plan covers all the movements of capital that will take place along the
project. A detailed description of personnel costs and expenses proper to the
project is attached.
In addition, guiding dates are included, as well as the measure of variability.

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The overall cost of the Project amounts 952.380€, including a contingency fund
of 250.000€, to be able to cope adequately with the risks in the most
pessimistic scenario. It is important to note that the calculation of the value of
purchasing costs is deemed to be reasonably conservative, in order to avoid
budgetary constraints.
The formula to calculate salaries take into account the average wage level of
specialists in Norway, (15€/hour), with a maximum of 8 hours per day, on the
basis of the legislation in force. Even if there is no national minimum wage in
the Kingdom of Norway, the average wage used for calculating is realistic.
COST ANALYSIS TABLE IN APPENDIX
STAKEHOLDERS
GESTIÓN DE INTERESADOS
Stakeholders Unaware Resistant Neutral Supportive Leading
External consultancy
for choosing the fjord
C - D
People living in the
fjord region
C D
Norwegian institutions C D
Activists (NGOs,
ecologists, etc.)
C D
Financial institutions C D
Capitalist partners C - D
Sponsors C - D

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Associates C - D
Building contractors C - D
Nautical material
supplier
C - D
HR company
(recruiting)
C - D
Transport company C - D
Hosting company C - D
Legend
C – Current engagement
D – Desired
engagement
VI) Acquisitions
1) Acquisitions planning
It has been established that the following goods need to be acquired:
- 2 big tour boats
- 15 individual kayaks
- 3 medium size zodiacs
All these acquisitions are linked to the touristic exploitation of our project. The
specifications and characteristics are the following:
- 2 big tour boats: between 40 000€ and 60 000€, with capacity for at least
50 people although 70 would be desired. We could pay cash to improve
conditions.
- 15 individual kayaks: between 1 500€ and 2 000€ each. With a minimum
of 6 metres in length. We could pay cash to improve conditions.

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- 3 medium size zodiacs: between 5 000€ and 12 000€. A minimum 600hp
Kawasaki engine is needed. We could pay cash to improve conditions.
Three of the activities will be subcontracted, due to the high complexity:
- Building necessary structures and refurbishing the fjord. (Dock,
restaurant, service, information point, accommodation, etc.): we won’t
consider any project exceeding 400 000€. Respecting the delivery dates
will be considered top priority, contemplating fines up to 15 000€ per
week delay. Quality and environmental friendliness will be key factors.
- The staff selection process: between 150 000€ and 200 000€. We seek
a leading company with a good reputation in the market. We need a
minimum of 2 cooks, 2 captains, 3 security guards and a supporting
team comprised of 4 people. Previous experience is required.
- Marketing campaign for our final product: between 45 000€ and 65 000€.
We seek a leading company with a good reputation and knowledge of
the regional market. We are looking for an eye-catching high impact
campaign. Original ideas will be positively evaluated. The chosen
marketing agency will be responsible for the hypothetical legal
consequences of the campaign, contemplating fines up to 60 000€ per
week delay.
All contracts will be adjudicated by means of a public tender.
PLAN OF RISKS
In the present plan there are detailed the different events or conditions that of
taking place might suppose a negative effect on some aspect of the project. For
the correct evaluation of every risk, as well as each risk’s priority, a
classification that attends to diverse factors has been done. Since it appears in
the table number 1, there has been categorized the probability of an event
happening assigning to each one a value between 1 (slightly probable) and 10
(highly probable)

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Rating Mark Percentage Description
High 10 100 Possible
7,5 75
Medium 5 50 Probable
2,5 25
Low 1 10 Improbable
Table 1: table of probabilities
As with the table of probabilities, there has been realized one in which we
evaluate the impact that the event would produce in someone of the fields of
the project. Already be in costs, time or scope of the project. The table number
2 assigns a value from 1 to 10 to every impact in each of the aspects
mentioned previously.
Aims
Very down
(1)
Down (2,5)
Moderated
(5)
High (7,5)
very high
(10)
Costs
Small
increase of
costs
Cost
increase
<10 %
10 %-20 %
of increase
20 %-40 % of
increase
> 40 % of
increase
Time
Small
extension of
time
5 %-10 %
increase
of time
10 %-20 %
increase of
time
20 %-40 %
increase of time
> 40 % of
increase
Scope Changes
scarcely
perceptible
Changes in
minor
areas
Principal
areas of the
project
Not acceptable
Reduction for
the sponsor
Final
element of
project is
useless
Table 2: table of impacts
Once we have obtained the values for the risk both of probability and of impact,
we will come to the matrix of risk (table 3) to obtain the final punctuation of
probability / risk. By means of this value we will determine the priority that we
have to assign to the event in question. By means of the table 4, we will obtain

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a colour that will indicate the priority of the risk. This one priority will come
indicated in the card of every risk that it will appear in the following section.
Impact of risk
Happening Probability
Very low
(1)
Low(2,5)
Moderated
(5)
High
(7,5)
Very
High
(10)
Very High
(10)
10 25 50 75 100
High (7,5) 7,5 18,75 37,5 56,25 75
Moderated
(5)
5 12,5 25 37,5 50
Low(2,5) 2,5 6,25 12,5 18,75 25
Very low (1) 1 2,5 5 7,5 10
Table 3: matrix of risks
Probability - Impact Priority Depiction of colours
0 - 25 Low
26 - 50 Moderated-low
51 - 75 Moderated-High
76 - 100 High
Table 4: legend by sky course´s colours

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ROI
1. Initial data:
- Total cost: 877.975,00 € (included the Contingency Budget of 25% from
a total of 702.380€)
o 50% external shareholders: 438.987,50 €
o 50% internal partners (4 founders): 438.987,50 €
- Package 1: 350 €/person-night
- Package 2: 450 €/person-night
- Staff: 2 cooks, 2 captains and 2 security guards. The supporting team of
4 is meant to be the founder team, so in the following cost estimation it is
only included the cost of the external staff:
o 6 people * 15 €/h * 8 h/day * 6 months * 30 days/month = 129.600
€/year
2. Estimating to have a 50% of occupancy rate (50% for each package), 6
months a year(*):
- Operational earning per year (estimated): 320.000 €
- Staff cost (estimated): 129.600€
- General and operational costs (estimated): 70.000€
3. Resulting in a net profit of around 120.000€ per year, which would be used
in order to pay back the whole project investment in a total of 6 years’ time
(720.000€).
*The Contingency Budget would be used in order to cover any deviation in the estimation of costs, which could vary
either in our favour or against us.

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APPENDIX

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Concept
Personnel
costs
Costs
Variability
indicator
Fees and unit costs
Dates
(illustrative)
Fjord choice
04/05/15 –
15/06/15
Study the report
4.800,00 € - € 1-Low 4 people. 15€/h x 320 h
04/05/15 –
15/05/15
Move staff
360,00 €
2.500,00
€ 2-Medium
3 people. 15€/h x 24 h + Plane, train, car
tickets
18/05/15 –
18/05/15
Field study
4.800,00 € - € 1- Low 3 people. 15€/h x 320 h
19/05/15 –
15/06/15
Search for funding
16/06/15 –
17/08/15
Visit financial institutions
5.400,00 € - € 2- Medium 2 people. 15€/h x 360 h
16/06/15 –
17/08/15
Legal permits
16/06/15 –
07/07/15

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Town councils in the region
1.800,00 € - € 1- Low 2 people. 15€/ h x 120 h
16/06/15 –
06/07/15
Ministry of Agriculture
1.800,00 € - € 1- Low 2 people. 15€/h x 120 h
16/06/15 –
06/07/15
Ministry of Environment and
Industry 1.800,00 € - € 1- Low 2 people. 15€/h x 120 h
16/06/15 –
06/07/15
Tourism
1.800,00 € - € 1- Low 2 people. 15€/h x 120 h
16/06/15 –
06/07/15
Inform the population
1.200,00 € 500,00 € 1- Low 1 people. 15€/h x 80 h
16/06/15 –
29/06/15
Pay taxes
120,00 €
1.500,00
€ 2- Medium 1 people. 15€/h x 8 h + Fees
07/07/15 –
07/07/15
Search for funding
08/07/15 –
28/07/15
Subscription of an insurance
120,00 €
5.000,00
€ 1- Low 1 people. 15€/h x 8 h
08/07/15 –
08/07/15
Visit financial institutions 3.600,00 € - € 1- Low 2 people. 15€/h x 240 h
08/07/15 –

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28/07/15
Finding sponsors
1.800,00 € - € 1- Low 2 people. 15€/h x 240 h
08/07/15 –
28/07/15
Seeking partners
1.800,00 € - € 1- Low 2 people. 15€/h x 240 h
08/07/15 –
28/07/15
Searching for capital partners
1.800,00 € - € 1- Low 2 people. 15€/h x 240 h
08/07/15 –
28/07/15
Purchase a deposit of currency
120,00 € 500,00 € 1- Low 1 people. 15€/h x 8 h
08/07/15 –
08/07/15
Habilitation of the fjord
16/06/15 –
18/11/15
Prospecting companies
360,00 € - € 1- Low 1 people. 15€/h x 24 h
16/06/15 –
18/06/15
Calling for tenders
60,00 €
3.000,00
€ 1- Low 1 people. 15€/h x 4 h + Press and internet
16/06/15 –
16/06/15
Tender
- €
20.000,00
€ 2- Medium Subcontracted company
16/06/15 –
20/10/15

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Analysis of the proposals
9.600,00 € - € 1- Low 8 people. 15€/h x 640 h
20/10/15 –
17/11/15
Selection of the company
480,00 € - € 1- Low 8 people. 15€/h x 8 h
17/11/15 –
18/11/15
Habilitation of the fjord
18/11/15 –
29/06/16
Site selection
- €
10.000,00
18/11/15 –
30/12/15
Constructions
- €
400.000,0
0 € 2- Medium Subcontracted company
30/12/15 –
29/06/16
Acquisitions
18/11/15 –
17/08/16
Budget for ships (2 units)
3.600,00 € - € 1- Low 2 people. 15€/h 240 h
18/11/15 –
10/02/16
Budget for kayaks (15 units)
1.500,00 € - € 1- Low 2 people. 15€/h 100 h
18/11/15 –
23/12/15

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Budget for zodiacs (3 units)
1.500,00 € - € 1- Low 2 people. 15€/h 100 h
18/11/15 –
23/12/15
Acquisition of the immovable
assets
1.200,00 €
180.000,0
0 € 3-High 2 people. 15€/h 80 h + Acquisition costs
27/07/16 –
17/08/16
Agreements with third parties
16/06/15 –
09/11/15
Headhunting
- €
200.000,0
0 € 2- Medium Subcontracted company
16/06/15 –
19/10/15
Selection process
1.800,00 € - € 1- Low 2 people. 15€/h x 120 h
20/10/15 –
09/11/15
Selection of the transport
company 3.600,00 € - € 1- Low 2 people. 15€/h 240 h
16/06/15 –
06/07/15
Negotiation with transport
companies 1.680,00 € - € 2- Medium 2 people. 15€/h x 112 h
07/07/15 –
15/07/15
Searching hotels and apartments 3.600,00 € - € 1- Low 2 people. 15€/h 240 h
16/06/15 –

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06/07/15
Negotiation and agreements
1.680,00 € - € 2- Medium 2 people. 15€/h x 112 h
07/07/15 –
15/07/15
Marketing
27/07/16 –
23/09/16
Advertising agency contract
600,00 €
35.000,00
€ 2- Medium 2 people. 15€/h x 40 h + Contracting costs
27/07/16 –
10/08/16
Designing the campaign
- €
25.000,00
10/08/16 –
21/09/16
Launching
- €
5.000,00
22/09/16 –
23/09/16
Risk costs
Contingency budget 250.000,0
0 € Amount committed for remediating risks
TOTAL 64.380,00 €
888.000,0
1-Low

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0 €
TOTAL (Personnel + Costs)
952.380,00
€ Range of
variability
2-Medium
3-High

Álvaro José Luis Mikel Myriam Average
Attractiveness
of idea
5 5 5 5 5
Ability to
undertake
2 4 3 3 3
Practicality 3 3 3 4 3,25
Potential
market
demand
5 5 5 5 5
Ability to
combat
competition
3 3 4 3 3,25
Ability to
differentiate
5 5 5 3 4,5
Price potential 5 5 5 5 5
Resource
availability
2 2 3 3 2,5

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