Question:
Discuss About The Citizens Band Brand Of Personal Computers?
Entrepreneurs are often confused with business owners. While a business owner may be an entrepreneur, not every person who operates a business entity qualifies as one. At the core of this concept is the mindset of the entrepreneur which is centered on innovation that seeks to create value and solve problems. Confidence and passion are some of the hallmarks of the typical entrepreneur who is also motivated. The current theories on the concept include the sociological and psychological approaches. Innovation and motivation theories are also postulated by scholars such as McClelland and Joseph Schumpeter. Dick Smith is an Australian entrepreneur who exhibits the traits of an entrepreneur, saw the opportunities and developed business ideas and competes successfully against his competitors.
Some of the enterprises started by Smith include the Dick Smith Electronics in the 1960’s under the erstwhile name of Dick Smith Car Radios. This venture was engaged in the sale of the Citizens Band brand of radios and personal computers. He sold the business in 1982 to Woolworths which continued to operate the business under his name (Feneley 2015). He also successfully established the Australian Geographic which was based on the famous world renowned National Geographic. Dick Smith Foods was founded in 1999 to sell food that is exclusively produced in Australia and owned by Australian companies. This company competes with companies with foreign ownership such as Campbell Soup Company which is actively engaged in the foods market in Australia.
Smith was born in 1944 and his father was a salesman while the mother was a housewife. His father tried unsuccessfully to start a business which failed (Griffins 2017).He did not perform well in his education and at one time dropped out to start an apprenticeship. He managed to obtain a radio license at seventeen years of age and was repairing taxi car radios by the age of 20. This shows that he had a passion and propensity to engage in entrepreneurship that was hinged on problem solving. The relevant theory that is applicable in this case study is the psychological approach (Gorgievski, & Stephan 2016). While performing poorly in his academics, he may have developed the passion to achieve highly in business that was based on a focused vision. He showed the ability to face opposition by briefly dropping out of school to start an apprenticeship.
The characteristics that contributed to his success as an entrepreneur may have been influenced by his father who unsuccessfully tried to start a business. The need to start in the future a business that would be successful in comparison to his father may have been a motivator for the young entrepreneur. It is also probable that the father had low dominance on Smith in allowing him to briefly take leave of his studies in his formative years. Hägg & Kurczewska (2016) state that self reliance is another trait that he exhibited by attaining the license to repair car radios at a young age. The psychological theory also posits that the society should have a sufficient number of people with the necessary psychological characteristics (Ikemefuna 2016). This could have been provided to the young entrepreneur by his parents as well as his grandmother who was a photographer.
The three traits of an entrepreneur as stated by Joseph Schumpeter are innovation, creativity and foresight (Jasanta 2015). Smith showed innovation when he opened a new market under his Dick Smith Foods which competed against foreign owned entities. The new market catered for Australian owned companies and dealt with food exclusively produced in Australia. He also introduced a new product, Australian Geographic which became successful. His foresight is seen when he foresaw the opportunity for the car radio and personal computers and pioneered in capturing the market at its infancy stage. He later sold out when the market was beginning to mature and made a good profit from the disposal of the electronics business. Some of the colorful names given to his food labels show his creativity. This is in the effort to compete with the closest market leaders.
In addition to the above traits, Smith showed the character of being able to make decisions under uncertainty as well as to make things in a better and totally new way. This is according to the theory set out by McClelland in the theory of high achievement (Jasanta 2015).The need to succeed may have started from his early years after seeing the failure of the business started by his father. The need to succeed that is not influenced by money is a trait that can be seen in Smith. The theory of high achievement is underpinned by the acquired needs theory. This theory states that a person has three needs at any given time: need for power, affiliation and achievement. The third consideration is applicable in the case of Smith who showed the desire to achieve or get success through his efforts. The above traits collectively are common in most successful entrepreneurs.
The recognition of opportunity and development of ideas is within the perspectives of process and activity (Kuratko, Morris & Schindehutte 2015).Using this perspective, Smith was able to extract profits from the car and radio electronics business when the environment was ambiguous and uncertain. Smith capitalized on the value of information that he had received while undertaking his radio repair license and recognized the opportunity in its infancy. The need for customers to install car radios in their cars was an opportunity he leveraged with his training as an emerging entrepreneurial opportunity. Schmidt (2007), states that he also recognized the opportunity and potential growth of the Citizens Band radio for short-distance communication which enabled individuals and businesses to communicate.
The development of the ideas started in Australia in the electronics but which later spread to other markets. In the years 1978-1982, he spread outside of the boundaries of Australia into Asia and the US (Schmidt 2007). In the foods business segment, the process of development of ideas was simply to instill pride in Australian ownership and products. This required knowledge of the food market, the objective to undertake sector marketing and identifying the consumer problems and issues. His proposition that was part of the activity process in idea development was the objective to change the market. He located the opportunity, accumulated resources, built an organization and marketed his products creatively. His entrepreneurial ability was in the ability to make connections with the “dots” in a market and establish a business idea out of them. Dick Smith’s (media releases, 2017), states that the process of development of the idea frequently courted legal actions by his competitors to which he responded to proactively.
The competitive advantage in his foods business is the differential advantage he propositioned of being a domestic brand. The mission statement states that sells food produced in Australia by domestically owned companies. The value proposition is that the profits made will stay within Australia, will provide employment for Australians and will help in the development of the Australian economy (Dick Smith 2017).This appeal to the patriotic sensibilities of consumers is what gives Dick Smith the competitive advantage over its competitors. Another proposition and marketing strategy is that all profits are donated to charity (Heene & Sanchez 2010). This approach gives it the differential advantage of being seen as being more of a charitable enterprise that is not driven by private gain when compared to its competitors. This approach appeals to consumers, who would wish to participate in charitable activities and are able to do so indirectly by purchasing products from this company.
In the electronics business, Dick Smith Electronics had a comparative advantage over its competition. Apart from selling and installing car radios, the business also sold components to hobbyists who enjoyed working with electronics. The current market at that time was dominated by large whole sellers. Their mode of operation was run on customers making queues and being served at the counter. Smith introduced a new model that was based on self service as well as a mail order service. This advantage in improved service when compared to the counter-sales of his competitors resulted in an exponential growth of his company. The Australian Geographic publication enjoyed the differential advantage of being seen as a superior brand that is affiliated with the world renowned National Geographic. This brand was protected by patent and had immediacy in brand recognition.
The future recommendation to Dick Smith is with regards to the two business entities he currently runs: Australian Geographic and Dick Smith Foods. He should consider diversifying into other publications that are related to his current business. He should also ensure generational transition in the leadership of his business entities by mentoring his children to take over when he passes on (Daspit 2017). A magazine that is informative that targets farm producers in Australia would be in tandem with his foods business. For the Dick Smith Foods, the consideration of branching out into new markets and replicating the model is worth considering. An example would be to venture into New Zealand and establishing a similar venture and appealing to the sensibilities and patriotism of New Zealand consumers. He would use the Australian entity as his reference point in gaining consumer confidence.
Entrepreneurs are differentiated from business owners by several traits such as being self driven, motivated and innovative. Dick Smith in Australia developed his entrepreneurial ability early on in life, influenced by the experiences of his father. The need to succeed and achieve as stated by McClelland influenced the decisions he made in his formative years. Being a socially marginal man, he was not constrained by social restrictions in his quest for success. He recognized opportunities, developed the ideas into business organizations and grew the entities formed. His companies prospered on competitive advantages of the value proposition he postulated that were based on differential advantages. The recommendation for Dick Smith is to diversify his investments and consider replicating his models in new markets such as New Zealand.
References
Daspit, JJ, Chrisman, JJ, Sharma, P, Pearson, AW, & Long, RG, 2017, ‘A Strategic Management Perspective of the Family Firm: Past Trends, New Insights, and Future Directions’, Journal of Managerial Issues, vol. 29, no. 1, pp. 6-29.
Dick Smith’s, 2003, Media releases, viewed 15 September, < https://www.dicksmithfoods.com.au/?d=media>
Dick Smith’s, 2017, About us, viewed 15 September, < https://www.dicksmithfoods.com.au/?d=main&p=sitemap>
Feneley, R, 2015, Queen’s Birthday honours: Dick Smith, a ‘dumb’ kid who was almost never famous, viewed 15 September, < https://www.smh.com.au/national/queens-birthday-honours-dick-smith-a-dumb-kid-who-was-almost-never-famous-20150605-ghhxjc.html>
Gorgievski, MJ, & Stephan, U 2016, ‘Advancing the Psychology of Entrepreneurship: A Review of the Psychological Literature and an Introduction’, Applied Psychology: An International Review, vol. 65, no. 3, pp. 437-468. Available from: 10.1111/apps.12073. [15 September 2017].
Griffins, G, 2017, Dick Smith: Australian aviator and businessman, viewed 15 September, <https://www.britannica.com/biography/Dick-Smith-Australian-aviator-and-businessman>
Hägg, G, & Kurczewska, A, 2016, ‘Connecting the Dots: A Discussion on Key Concepts in Contemporary Entrepreneurship Education’, Education & Training, vol. 58, no. 7-8, pp. 700-714.
Heene, A, & Sanchez, R, 2010, Enhancing Competences for Competitive Advantage, 1st ed, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Bingley, UK.
Ikemefuna, A, 2016, ‘International Entrepreneurship Theory: Past, Present and Way Forward’, Entrepreneurial Business and Economics Review, Vol 4, Iss 4, Pp 93-103 (2016), no. 4, p. 93.
Jasanta, P, 2015, ‘A Conceptual Mapping Resource Advantage Theory, Competitive Advantage Theory, and Transient Competitive Advantage’, Expert Journal of Business and Management, Vol 3, Iss 2, Pp 140-149 (2015), no. 2, p. 140.
Kuratko, D, Morris, M, & Schindehutte, M, 2015, ‘Understanding the dynamics of entrepreneurship through framework approaches’, Small Business Economics, vol. 45, no. 1, pp. 1-13. Available from: 10.1007/s11187-015-9627-3, viewed 15 September 2017.
Schmidt, L, 2007, Profile: Dick Smith, viewed 15 September, < https://www.smh.com.au/small-business/profile-dick-smith-20090619-coo6.html>
Essay Writing Service Features
Our Experience
No matter how complex your assignment is, we can find the right professional for your specific task. Contact Essay is an essay writing company that hires only the smartest minds to help you with your projects. Our expertise allows us to provide students with high-quality academic writing, editing & proofreading services.
Free Features
Free revision policy
$10Free bibliography & reference
$8Free title page
$8Free formatting
$8How Our Essay Writing Service Works
First, you will need to complete an order form. It's not difficult but, in case there is anything you find not to be clear, you may always call us so that we can guide you through it. On the order form, you will need to include some basic information concerning your order: subject, topic, number of pages, etc. We also encourage our clients to upload any relevant information or sources that will help.
Complete the order form
Once we have all the information and instructions that we need, we select the most suitable writer for your assignment. While everything seems to be clear, the writer, who has complete knowledge of the subject, may need clarification from you. It is at that point that you would receive a call or email from us.
Writer’s assignment
As soon as the writer has finished, it will be delivered both to the website and to your email address so that you will not miss it. If your deadline is close at hand, we will place a call to you to make sure that you receive the paper on time.
Completing the order and download
