BMSK4006 Skills for Workplace Managing Enterprise in the 21st Century Assignment

BMSK4006 Skills for Workplace Managing Enterprise in the 21st Century Assignment

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Part 1

Executive Summary

This report has involved a developed business plan for the business idea of initiating Dog Walking Services for the people living in Cardiff, UK so that the dogs of fully employed dog owners can remain active and healthy in their absence. The name of the business entity is DogWalk. The core mission of this business is to earn some money and profitability along with having a unique identity in the market or industry of pet care or dog walking. To sell dog walking services to the dog owners, some advertising and promotional methods have been chosen such as free sampling of dog walking services and attracting customers via sharing content over different social media platforms.

This business idea would be carried on solely and its legal form of structure has been defined as a sole proprietorship. The location where services would be rendered includes Cardiff, UK and the entire management has been decided to be ensured by one single person i.e. me. While rendering the services, two dogs would be taken for the walk for 2 hours every day at a reasonable amount of price so that maximum people can get attracted towards these services. Mostly, the young and full-time working professionals would be targeted who are not able to take their dogs on a walk due to their busy schedules.

The competition in the pet care industry is high because many professional organizations of pet care have been working and growing in the industry for years. The key strengths of different competitors have been discussed and compared by applying a suitable model of Unique Selling Proposition (USP). A financial budget has been defined on an estimation basis i.e. 2000 Euros that might get increased based on the changing needs and requirements of the new business idea.

Business/Industry Overview

The dog walking industry is observed as one of the fastest-growing industries in the UK for small business start-ups. The growth of the dog walking industry in the UK has been increasing steadily since the year 2015 from 5.1 billion Euros to 5.3 billion Euros in 2019. The UK pet market has been observed as the largest industry in Europe. According to the report of PDSA Animal Wellbeing (2019), half of the young adults of the UK own a pet. On average, most dog walkers in the UK earn between 10 Euros to 20 Euros per hour. A recent study of the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (2018) has shown that dog walkers are in high demand because the dog owners remain busy in doing their full-time jobs and businesses and they seek for dog walkers as they want to keep their dogs healthy and active in their presence.

Based on the report that has been recently published by Statista Research Department (2015), it has been founded that dog owners take their dogs for a walk for at least 10 minutes or more in the UK [Appendix 1]. The trend of hiring professionals for dog walking has got been increasing rapidly among pet owners. Other than the dog walking trend, some other trends have also been observed in the UK such as dog yoga, pet slimming classes, grooming parlours, etc (Walk My Dog, 2021). The culture of the UK highly supports the dog-keeping practices as people are open minded and believe that dog are their friends family members. The UK economy allows dog walking organizations to initiate programs for encouraging dog health and making them active. The government influences the dog walking industry positively by creating awareness among pet owners that dog needs regular exercise to remain healthy and active (Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs, 2018).

My business idea is to work as a dog walking professional and I will be targeting the Cardiff area where I will provide help to those pet owners who work full time by providing them dog walking services. This business idea suits the industry as I would be taking four dogs daily for 2 hours. The competition in this industry is high as many professional dog walking organizations are already providing various dog related services to the pet owners for years. One of the biggest competitors is Professional Dog Walkers Association (PDWA) which is a registered association (Professional Dog Walkers Association, 2016). My services will be unique and different from others because of the following features:

• Providing integrated combinations of dog walking and dog playing services
• Charging less prices as compared to other dog walking organizations
• Providing grooming services to dogs

Market Analysis and Competition

The target market where the dog walking services would be rendered is the Cardiff area, UK which is the capital city of Wales. The city is expanded within the area of 140.3 km square. Some towns that would be covered in serving these services in Cardiff include Butetown, Canton, Castle and Adamsdown. These areas will further get increased with the increase in the number of experience.

In the recent years, the concept of dog walking and health has been trending and got encouraged among dog owners and therefore studies have revealed that dog owners are more active than non-dog owners. During the period of 2020-2021, the population of dogs in the UK has been estimated at 12.5 million and due to being a full-time employed person, the dog owners fail to take their dogs on walk and eventually they become lazy and inactive which also affect their health (Walk My Dog, 2021). Therefore, the need for dog walking services is high in Cardiff, UK. In the UK, Smith (2019) estimated that people incurs 445 Euros to 1620 Euros every year for owning a dog. The percentage of dog ownership has been stood at the highest in the UK i.e. 33 % as compared to other pets [Appendix 2]. On estimation, approximate 10%-15% of the dog owners might buy the dog walking services.

The repeat-purchase volume refers to the number or percentage of customers who visit the business regularly for buying products/ services. The repeat-purchase rate can range 0 % to 100 % and higher the rate will indicate higher repetitive visits of the customers. For example, if the total number of customers in the first month would be 50 and the number of customers who have returned for again buying the dog walking services in that particular month would be 30, then the repeat purchase rate for that month would be 60 % and this estimation has been calculated as follows:

Number of customers returning/ Number of total customers*100>

Socio-demographic factors include the physical health and psychological benefits of dogs that can affect the dog walking services. Some other economic factors that may affect the dog walking services include ethnicity, presence of older sibling, maternal age at delivery, number of family members in the household and parental education or social class. The presence of sibling and more family members in household can reduce the sales of dog walking services because they would take the initiative of taking their dogs on walk (NCBI, 2018). Also, during the maternal delivery age many female dogs would restrict for going on a walk. All such factors would negatively affect the sales for this business idea.

Key strengths over the competition

Business Organizations	Cardiff Dog Walking	Danescourt & Radyr Dog Walking pet sitting	Friends for Pets Cardiff	Dog Walking Services (Business idea)
Core strengths	· Wide range of services including dog sitting, cat sitting, house dog boarding, etc. · Experience of more than 10 years	· Qualified professionals in providing first aid services to dogs · High-quality care to dogs	· Liked and preferred by most of the customers · All dog carers and walkers are registered, experienced, insured and uniformed (NCBI, 2018)	· Lowest prices in the market · Only two dogs are taken for a walk at a single time to ensure high quality services · Considering behavioural traits of dogs · Taking dogs for a walk based on the timing suitable to dog owners · Opens 27*7 hours

The volume and value of sales has been estimated and compared with existing competitors as follows:

Competitors	Cardiff Dog Walking	Danescourt & Radyr Dog Walking pet sitting	Friends for Pets Cardiff	Dog Walking Services (Business idea)
Sales (for the period of 2021-2022)	£65,000	£50,000	£45,000	£40,000 - £60,000

The following barriers to entry can prove to be helpful in protecting the business from competition:

• Access to capital and equipment: To start dog walking business in the UK, right insurances would be required along with other equipment such as leads, toys and harnesses. Also, certain amount of capital will be needed to do some promotion/ marketing.
• Regulations: All dog walking professionals need to strictly follow and comply with the guidelines that are developed by Dogs Trust Organization. Some regulations include that not more than four dogs are walked at one time and walkers must ensure that they have a lead for each dog (Christian et al., 2017). The compliance of all such regulations could resist people to choose this business idea.

Sales and Marketing Plan

Product or Service Offerings

Services to be offered

• The following services would be offered to the potential customers:
• Dog walking services to help those people who live alone in their homes and are fully employed
• The dogs will be taken for a walk for at least 2 hours each day
• Only two dogs will be taken for the walk so that high quality of care can be ensured of each dog

The customers will get benefitted due to following competitive features:

• Buying dog walking services any time during the day or night as it would get open for 24*7 hours
• Getting high quality services at reasonable prices than in the market (Christian et al., 2017)

For highlighting the key strengths over the competition, a model has been applied i.e. USP (Unique Selling Proposition) which helps in describing the key strengths to potential buyers along with sharing with them that in what ways dog walking services business idea is different from other competitors.

USP	What customers want?	What competitors do well?	What you do well?
	· High-quality care of their dogs at reasonable prices · Keeping their dogs healthy and active · Keeping medical conditions of dogs in mind · Asking the dog owners about behavioural traits of dogs	Cardiff Dog Walking · Dog Day Care · Overnight Home from Home Dog Boarding Danescourt & Radyr Dog Walking pet sitting · Quality per care · Home visits · Personal dog walking services Friends for Pets Cardiff · Flexible timings for dog walking as per the suitability of dog owners · Dog house sitting	· Providing services at discounted rates to regular customers · Health insurance is provided to dogs · Providing friendly environment to dogs for walking · Keeping dogs safe and ensuring their complete care

Pricing Strategy

Pricing is considered as one of the most important aspects of marketing strategy and it has been decided that lower prices would be charged for rendering the dog walking services so that maximum potential customers can get attracted, but the least prices must not affect the incurred costs and profitability in the long run.

A value-based pricing strategy would be followed while setting the prices for dog walking prices. Based on this strategy, the prices will be charged in consideration to the worth being perceived by the customers while receiving the services (Richards et al., 2013). The application of a value-based pricing model has been reflected as follows:

1. Evaluating customers’ needs and values

• High quality care to dogs
• Taking dogs on walk for at least two hours

1. Setting target price to reflect customers’ values

• Price for each walk would be £ 8.5 and it may get updated according to the services demanded by the customers
• This would be the lowest price in the market as other dog walking organizations charge more than £ 10 and sometimes £ 20.

1. Determining costs and competitive differentiation

• The establishment of this business idea would incur an estimated cost of £ 500 and it might get increased based on the further needs and expansion requirements of the business.

1. Delivering services to meet and exceed customers’ values

• Dog walking and playing services
• Pet care
• Keeping dogs healthy, active and happy

Sales and Distribution

The dog walking services can be distributed to the customers by adopting the following process:

• Step 1: Online orders will be accepted from the customers as customers can contact via email, phone or purchase the services online from the website.
• Step 2: After finalizing the order, date and time will be fixed along with the list of services being demanded by the customers.
• Step 3: The dogs will be then taken to the walks and will be picked by visiting the customers’ houses and will be dropped off at their homes after the time gets completed (Richards et al., 2013).
• Step 4: After finally delivering the services to the customers, the payment will be made by the dog owners, either through online applications (Google Pay or Direct transfer to bank account) or via cash.

Advertising and Promotion

Different forms of media will be used for sharing promotional messages to customers such as online website, emails and social media applications (Instagram, Whatsapp and Twitter). The focus will be ensured on social media applications because they are considered as the fastest means for sharing information and maximum customers can get attracted as many dog pages are being shared by the dog owners and dog lovers on different applications (mostly Instagram).

A most suitable method of sales promotion will be adopted i.e. free samples where the dog walking service would be provided to the customers for free for only once so that the people could determine the quality and effectiveness of the services being rendered to them. This business idea is going to be initiated at small scale, hence no product launches and trade shows will be organized as the investment or budget for developing this business idea would be low (Westgarth et al., 2017). A few marketing materials will be used including dog walking brochures, promotional leaflets and advertising materials.

The budget for this business idea has been shown as below:

Activities	Cost (in Euros)
Registration fees	150
Purchase of equipment including toys	500
Advertising fees	1000
Other expenses relating to business expansion	350
Total Budget	2000

Ownership and Management Plan

The legal structure of this business idea will be sole proprietorship as I would be solely carrying out this business idea as I don’t want anyone to get involved in this business idea. Being a sole proprietorship firm, no formal actions would require to be carried on and all the necessary guidelines and legal regulations will be followed while rendering dog walking services to the customers such as not taking more than four dogs at single time and taking the responsibility that no dog could get harm or no kind of damage must be caused to dogs (Westgarth et al., 2017).

Due to the following reasons, this business idea has been kept as a sole proprietorship firm and not any other legal ownership structure:

• Being the sole owner, the control over the business activities will be possessed by me and all the decisions would be taken solely.
• It would get easy to fulfil tax reporting requirements.
• It is the simplest legal ownership structure and least expensive legal structure that is easy to get established (Ryan, 2016).

All the activities of this business idea would be managed solely with greater effectiveness and efficiency. For example, after rendering services to different dog owners, they would be asked to share their feedbacks about the quality of services rendered so that the rating on website can be increased and maximum customers can get to know about the business (Christian et al., 2016). Other than this, many new and attractive strategies would be formulated such as offering services at discounted prices, offering combo services and rendering two-days service for free after purchasing the services for 15 days. All such strategies would help in bringing long-term sustainability within the dynamic and competitive industry of pet care (Huws et al., 2016).

Operating Plan

The operating plan has been developed and shown as below for outlining physical requirements of the business including office, retail space, supplies, labour and warehouse (if applicable);

Operating essentials	Development	Production	Facilities	Staffing	Equipment	Supplies
Discussion	· An in-depth research has been undertaken about dog owners who have been located in different areas of Cardiff · Strong relationships have been made with dog owners by interacting with them via online applications and door-to-door visits (Huws et al., 2016)	-	· A small office will be taken on rent in Cardiff so that dog owners can visit and purchase for dog walking services (Cheong et al., 2015) · The estimated cost of leasing may include 200 Euros	· As it would be the sole proprietorship firm, hence there would be no staffing requirements	· Some necessary equipment would be purchased that would be required while taking dogs on the walk such as toys, belts, food items, etc. · Different prices would need to be paid for purchasing these equipment (Kingsnorth, 2019)	· The defined equipment would be purchased in wholesale from the local suppliers of pet care shops in Cardiff · All the purchased equipment would be stored in the office in a locked and safe cupboard so that food items must not get damaged

The above operation plan has reflected the discussion for operational requirements and each requirement has been discussed as well as linked in consideration to the business idea of dog walking services.

Financial Plan

This financial plan will comprise of four different elements namely, Income statement, cash flow, balance sheet, and most importantly break even analysis.

INCOME STATEMENT

MONTH------->
YEAR:	2021	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Total
INCOME
Income recieved from daily hour sessions				45000	50000	55000	60000	62000	67000	52500	57500	61000	62000	63000	64000	699000
Income recieved from grooming activities				1000	1500	1700	2000	2100	2400	2500	2650	2700	2750	2800	2950	27050
Income from Boarding Activities				2000	2100	2450	2500	2650	2700	2450	3100	3000	3200	2800	3500	32450
Extra per hour income recieved				1000	120	1300	1350	1400	1450	1500	1550	1650	1700	2800	1850	17670
A	Total				49000	53720	60450	65850	68150	73550	58950	64800	68350	69650	71400	72300	776170
COSTS I
Variable Cost/ Direct Cost
Staff Wages			1000	1100	1155	1150	1200	1210	1225	1250	1331	1400	1450	1500	14971
Sales and Marketing Expenses			500	600	650	720	745	75	800	850	840	900	1000	500	8180
Depreciation			0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Utilities			100	150	200	250	300	350	400	450	500	525	575	625	4425
B	Total Direct Costs			1600	1850	2005	2120	2245	1635	2425	2550	2671	2825	3025	2625	27576
C	Gross Profit			47400	51870	58445	63730	65905	71915	56525	62250	65679	66825	68375	69675	748594
Cost II
Total Fixed Cost
Land at lease			5000	5000	5000	5000	5000	5000	5000	5000	5000	5000	5000	5000	60000
Phones			200	200	200	200	200	200	200	200	200	200	200	200	2400
Legal			502	502	502	502	502	502	502	502	502	502	502	502	6024
Accounts			450	450	450	450	450	450	450	450	450	450	450	450	5400
Internet			350	350	350	350	350	350	350	350	350	350	350	350	4200
D	6502	6502	6502	6502	6502	6502	6502	6502	6502	6502	6502	6502	78024
Total Overhead Costs	8102	8352	8507	8622	8747	8137	8927	9052	9173	9327	9527	9127	105600
Net Profit			39298	43518	49938	55108	57158	63778	47598	53198	56506	57498	58848	60548	642994
E	Bank Balance
Opening Balance			100	324	224	454	275	545	600	650	750	800	850	900	6472
Carried forward			39398	43842	50162	55562	57433	64323	48198	53848	57256	58298	59698	61448	649466

CASHFLOW

Particulars	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Total
Cash Received
Cash from Operations
Cash Sales	40000	42000	50400	60480	72576	87091	104509	125411	150494	180592	216711	260053	1390318
Cash from Receivables	0	2000	2400	2880	3456	4147	4977	5972	7166	8600	10320	12383	64301
SUBTOTAL CASH FROM OPERATIONS	40000	42000	50400	60480	72576	87091	104509	125411	150494	180592	216711	260053	1390318
Additional Cash Received
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Received	2000	2100	2520	3024	3629	4355	5225	6271	7525	9030	10836	13003	69516
New Current Borrowing	3000	3150	3780	4536	5443	6532	7838	9406	11287	13544	16253	19504	104274
New Other Liabilities (interest-free)	4000	4200	5040	6048	7258	8709	10451	12541	15049	18059	21671	26005	139032
New Long-term Liabilities	5000	5250	6300	7560	9072	10886	13064	15676	18812	22574	27089	32507	173790
Sales of Other Current Assets	2000	2100	2520	3024	3629	4355	5225	6271	7525	9030	10836	13003	69516
Sales of Long-term Assets	3000	3150	3780	4536	5443	6532	7838	9406	11287	13544	16253	19504	104274
New Investment Received	3000	3150	3780	4536	5443	6532	7838	9406	11287	13544	16253	19504	104274
SUBTOTAL CASH RECEIVED	62000	65100	78120	93744	112493	134991	161990	194388	233265	279918	335902	403082	2154992
Expenditures
Expenditures from Operations
Cash Spending	3000	3150	3780	4536	5443	6532	7838	9406	11287	13544	16253	19504	104274
Bill Payments	10000	10500	12600	15120	18144	21773	26127	31353	37623	45148	54178	65013	347579
SUBTOTAL SPENT ON OPERATIONS	13000	13650	16380	19656	23587	28305	33966	40759	48910	58693	70431	84517	451853
Additional Cash Spent
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Paid Out	4000	4200	5040	6048	7258	8709	10451	12541	15049	18059	21671	26005	139032
Principal Repayment of Current Borrowing	2000	2100	2520	3024	3629	4355	5225	6271	7525	9030	10836	13003	69516
Other Liabilities Principal Repayment	1000	1050	1260	1512	1814	2177	2613	3135	3762	4515	5418	6501	34758
Long-term Liabilities Principal Repayment	3000	3150	3780	4536	5443	6532	7838	9406	11287	13544	16253	19504	104274
Purchase Other Current Assets	1000	1050	1260	1512	1814	2177	2613	3135	3762	4515	5418	6501	34758
Purchase Long-term Assets	5000	5250	6300	7560	9072	10886	13064	15676	18812	22574	27089	32507	173790
Dividends	3000	3150	3780	4536	5443	6532	7838	9406	11287	13544	16253	19504	104274
SUBTOTAL CASH SPENT	32000	33600	40320	48384	58061	69673	83608	100329	120395	144474	173369	208042	1112254
Net Cash Flow	30000	31500	37800	45360	54432	65318	78382	94058	112870	135444	162533	195040	1042738

BALANCE SHEET

Particulars	Total
Current Assets	79586
Cash	15917
Accounts Receivable	7959
Inventory	7959
Other Current Assets	7959
TOTAL CURRENT ASSETS	119378
Long-term Assets
Long-term Assets	47751
Accumulated Depreciation	7959
TOTAL LONG-TERM ASSETS	54710
TOTAL ASSETS	174088
Liabilities and Capital
Current Liabilities	15917
Accounts Payable	7959
Current Borrowing	15917
Other Current Liabilities	63669
SUBTOTAL CURRENT LIABILITIES	103461
Long-term Liabilities	79586
TOTAL LIABILITIES	183047
Paid-in Capital	47751
Retained Earnings	31834
Earnings	31834
TOTAL CAPITAL	111420
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND CAPITAL	294467
Net Worth	183047

BREAK-EVEN ANALYSIS

Break-Even Point (sales Costs ÷ PV Ratio
Particulars	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Sales	49000	53720	60450	65850	68150	73550	58950	64800	68350	69650	71400	72300
Fixed Cost	6502	6502	6502	6502	6502	6502	6502	6502	6502	6502	6502	6502
Variable Cost	1600	1850	2005	2120	2245	1635	2425	2550	2671	2825	3025	2625
PV ratio (Contribution/Sales)	96.73%	96.56%	96.68%	96.78%	96.71%	97.78%	95.89%	96.06%	96.09%	95.94%	95.76%	96.37%
Break Even Sales	6721.48	6733.9	6725.06	6718.29	6723.49	6649.82	6780.94	6768.35	6766.42	6776.87	6789.66	6746.96

References

Cheong, A.L.H. and Yi, K.H., 2015. Self-extension and Purchase Behavior of Dog Related Products and Services: An In-depth Interview among Selected Malaysian Dog Owners. Asian Social Science, 11(3), p.26.

Christian, H., Bauman, A., Epping, J., Levine, G.N., McCormack, G., Rhodes, R.E., Richards, E., Rock, M. and Westgarth, C., 2016. State of the art review: Promoting dog walking for healthy lifestyles. American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine.

Christian, H.E., McCormack, G.R., Evenson, K.R. and Maitland, C., 2017. Dog walking. In Walking. Emerald Publishing Limited.

Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs. 2018. Code of practice for the welfare of Dogs. [Online]. Retrieved from https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/697953/pb13333-cop-dogs-091204.pdf

Gunter, L., Protopopova, A., Hooker, S.P., Der Ananian, C. and Wynne, C.D., 2017. Impacts of encouraging dog walking on returns of newly adopted dogs to a shelter. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, 20(4), pp.357-371.

Huws, U., Spencer, N.H. and Joyce, S., 2016. The size and characteristics of the on-demand economy in the UK and Europe. Economist.

Kingsnorth, S., 2019. Digital marketing strategy: an integrated approach to online marketing. Kogan Page Publishers.

Lowe, C.N., Williams, K.S., Jenkinson, S. and Toogood, M., 2014. Environmental and social impacts of domestic dog waste in the UK: Investigating barriers to behavioural change in dog walkers. International Journal of Environment and Waste Management, 13(4), pp.331-347.

NCBI. 2018. Encouraging Dog Walking for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention. AmericanJournal of Lifestyle Medicine. [Online]. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6124971/

Professional Dog Walkers Association. 2016. [Online]. Retrieved from https://professionaldogwalkersassociation.co.uk/

Richards, E.A., McDonough, M.H., Edwards, N.E., Lyle, R.M. and Troped, P.J., 2013. Psychosocial and environmental factors associated with dog-walking. International Journal of Health Promotion and Education, 51(4), pp.198-211.

Ryan, D., 2016. Understanding digital marketing: marketing strategies for engaging the digital generation. Kogan Page Publishers.

Smith, G., 2019. UK Pet Market Set to Hit £7 Billion by 2021. Pet Subjects. [Online]. Retrieved from https://petsubjects.co.uk/2019/11/07/uk-pet-market-set-to-hit-7billion-by-2021/

Walk My Dog. 2021. The UK Pet Care Market. [Online]. Retrieved from https://www.walkmydog.co.uk/franchise/uk-pet-care-market/

Westgarth, C., Christley, R.M., Marvin, G. and Perkins, E., 2017. I walk my dog because it makes me happy: a qualitative study to understand why dogs motivate walking and improved health. International journal of environmental research and public health, 14(8), p.936.

Westgarth, C., Christley, R.M., Marvin, G. and Perkins, E., 2019. The responsible dog owner: the construction of responsibility. Anthrozoös, 32(5), pp.631-646.

Appendices

Appendix 1: Frequency of dog walk

Source: https://www.statista.com/statistics/536614/dog-walks-frequency-in-the-united-kingdom-uk/

Appendix 2: Dog ownership in the UK

Source: https://www.statista.com/statistics/308218/leading-ten-pets-ranked-by-household-ownership-in-the-united-kingdom-uk/

Appendix 3: Diagram of services

Appendix 4: Office layout

Appendix 5: Marketing Brochure

Part 2: Reflection

Introduction

This report focuses on my critical expression over various subjects that I learned in this module. My journey has remained progressive and enlightening throughout the module and I have gained sufficient knowledge on the various subject matter. However, it is not limited to books and I need to learn and grow continuously. This report will discuss my journey and learning with the scope for my professional prospects (Allison et al., 2016).

Research skills

Research skills are inevitable for professional prospects because it makes an individual more analytical and objective towards various situations in life as well as at the workplace. Research skills enable a person to do a meticulous study on the subject and derive a more critical and appropriate conclusion. Research helps the business in decision-making and become more effective in running the business. it helps in determining the future trend of the market and customer preferences and tastes in advance. I possess good researching skills. I am highly analytical and assess all the aspects meticulously before making a decision(Allison et al., 2016). I believe that each factor is significant in taking a decision and every minute detail must be considered in the research. I feel that research skills are empirical for widening the scope of improvement and promotion in the corporate world. An individual with optimum research skills can help the business to grow and develop in the volatile market because it makes the decision more specific and task and goal-oriented. Research skills include a systematic approach to analyzing the issue and developing aims and objectives so that the study becomes more efficient and resourceful. I have learned the significance and types of researches in the module(Allison et al., 2016).

Organizational Skills

Organizational skills refer to the systematic and structural approach towards business operations. Optimum organizational skills enable the elimination of wastage. Organization skills enable a person to manage his/her scarce resources which is an inevitable factor in today's corporate work. It makes an individual highly effective and efficient in dealing with the environment's ups and downs. I possess modest organizational skills. I try to stick to the plan and can manage resources accordingly. I prefer to check everything after putting them in their place and receiving feedback while dealing with human resources (WALKER, 2017). I think that I learned the significance of organizational skills from the module and started applying the learnings in my routine life. I used to plan my day in the morning to reduce the wastage of my time. This has helped me to become more efficient in carrying out my routine job of dog walking. I had my clothes, shoes, watch, and mobile phone in place to reduce unnecessary movements and save my time and energy. Organizational skills have helped me to utilize my resources effectively and become more productive. However, I still need to perfect the art of organizing because I often think that I can optimize my organizational skills so I improve my prospects (WALKER, 2017)

Entrepreneurship

 I believe that entrepreneurship is an empirical skill to develop as it enables a person to tap new opportunities in the environment and create means to develop valuable products and services for the world. I lack considerable entrepreneurial skills but I have optimum learning skills that will help me to enhance my entrepreneurial skills. I believe that with entrepreneurial skills, I will enhance my professional prospects and this module has helped me to critically analyze my capabilities for successful entrepreneurship (Reyad, S., Badawi, S., and Hamdan, A., 2020). I learned the importance of creating valuable resources and products because of the rapid transformation in the lifestyle of people. Moreover, it also aids sustainable development and creating eco-friendly means for a constructive business plan. The world is suffering from uneven distribution of resources and its over-exploitation that can be addressed by effective entrepreneurship. I learned about different entrepreneurship and I think social entrepreneurship is the area where I can put my determined and true efforts as I am concerned about social issues and ecological imbalance. Entrepreneurship is an aspect of the business without which sustaining in a volatile environment is nearly impossible. With digitalization, AI, EVs, and many more technological advancements, entrepreneurship is inevitable to make the business offerings more lucrative and effective (Reyad, Badawi, and Hamdan, 2020).

Strategic planning

No business can sustain or even initiate without proper planning. A plan is necessary for optimizing the allocation and use of resources which can otherwise lead to losses. I have optimum planning skills because I have been taught to take decisions after thorough study and analysis. since childhood, I have been disciplined and planned my schedule and syllabus for study in advance. I also monitored and revised my plan if needed. From this module, I learned that strategic planning is goal-oriented to make the plan more effective in yielding favorable output. Strategic planning helps an individual to lead his life and progress in a specific direction and increases focus and motivates a person to persist and endeavor to achieve his/her goals. I learned about SWOT analysis and other tools and models that facilitate strategic planning. This module was very informative and knowledgeable in facilitating my wisdom about strategic planning. Strategic planning skills are vital for enhancing future goals and scope for promotion. However, I feel a dearth of lucid planning skills and I can improve myself in taking decisions and planning according to the goals and overall objective. I am enthusiastic and active in devoting my energy and focus to optimizing my planning skills (Rubenstein et al., 2019).

Time management

Time management I pivotal skill in managing the scarce resource that has no other alternative for an individual. I strongly believe that 'time is money and I do not prefer wasting my time to let the opportunity come to my doorstep. I hunt my opportunity myself and continuously develop to make myself eligible for the future needs for employability. From this module, I learned that time management can help the company to create internal capability and tap the opportunities timely. As an individual, I feel that I have optimum time management skills and I organize tasks in a specific order (Shoemaker, 2020). I am efficient in keeping all the distractions away and I have allotted time to socialize and still save time for my leisure activities. I devote 1 hour in the morning to calm my mind to use its full potential and increase my focus at work. Time management is not solely related to our work life but also our personal life. I make sure that I give enough time to my parents and family so that they do not lag and I feel belonged and happy. My work is my worship but I have a realization towards my social and economic roles and therefore I judiciously allocate my time among various activities and aspects of life (Shoemaker, 2020).

Planning skills

Planning skills help an individual to address future risks and create a plan that mitigates the risk to a good extent and increases the productivity and outcome of such plans. I have good planning skills and I have participated in co-curricular activities in which planning was crucial. For dog-walking, I planned everything and evaluated the implication by creating a profit and loss budget and cost of this activity. I allotted time and arranged the dogs in slots according to accessibility (Rubenstein et al., 2019). In this module, I learned different tools and techniques used while planning. I realized that it is a cumbersome and mind process. I will read books to enhance my knowledge about planning and related elements. I will try to optimize my planning skills so that I can put the resources to best use and decide judiciously among various alternatives. In planning, one needs to assess the internal and external environment. furthermore, planning is always goal-directed which makes an individual focus on key areas and narrow down the analytical subject matter to save time. I need to understand the importance of letting go of non-core factors. I need to inculcate vital planning skills so that it widens the scope for my employability prospects (Rubenstein et al., 2019).

Interpersonal communication skills

Communication is one of the most vital and engaging skills of a person. It enables a person to engage and connect with his/her peers and inculcate confidence within. I considerably lack good and effective interpersonal communication skills. I need to put effort honestly and deliberately to enhance my prospects. I am not timid but only converse when I have some work-related query or information. I need to understand that connections are vital in the corporate world as it directly affects harmony and work culture (Okoro, Washington, and Thomas, 2017). Without effective communication, I am unable to deliver my ideas in the discussion and influence anyone in the group. I believe that communication is the sum of the personality and disposition of a person in public as well as at the workplace. I feel that I am unable to draw the attention of people in conversation towards my idea and it is a sign of my ineffective interpersonal communication. I feel this will make a sheer difference in my prospects as it will disallow me to become ready for promotion and develop further at my workplace. This module helped me to analyze and assess the significance of interpersonal communication(Okoro, Washington, and Thomas, 2017).

Decision Making

Decision-making is an activity that cannot be ignored no matter what work we do. As an individual, I am modest in taking decisions. However, I tend to ignore risky decisions that can benefit me and my team greatly but if anything goes wrong, it can backfire. I try to avoid risk but I take decisions after a thorough analysis of all facts and figures. Decision-making is an intellectual process that requires studying and analyzing all the facts and alternatives (Ceschi et al., 2017). From this module, I learned the various techniques and tools that analysts and managers use to decide upon one alternative. all these decisions are goal-directed and have a specific target to complete. Decisions can be small or big but every small and minute decision can influence the business. The individual who has to decide must regard time and other sources as well before taking any decision. From this module, I was introduced to the viability and working of the decision-making process and its implication on the situation or the whole organization (Ceschi et al., 2017).

Professional Writing skills

Communicating is paramount to business transactions and the writing proficiency of an individual widens the scope for his development and growth in the employability area. I feel that I am quite average informal writing and preparing documents because I find it monotonous and not exciting at all. Also, my formal vocabulary and sense of arranging sentences and paragraphs are not well. Professional writing skills are important if one needs to explore the areas of growth within the organization (Ranaut, 2018). it helps the person to take up a role such as a report writing and writing business letters and emails. From this module, I realized the importance of optimizing formal writing skills for the growth of prospects and meeting the current demand of up-to-date and skilled employees. I am resolved to make it my priority as I feel that this can greatly influence my work.it will also help me structuring my report and research papers. Professional writing will facilitate business communication and stand out in the crowd of employees. Perfection in professional writing will enable me to connect to my superiors and widen the scope for promotion and growth in the company or my business (Ranaut, 2018).

Conclusion

From the above analysis, we found out that all the skills mentioned above are empirical in one's employability. I also discussed my weak points and my optimum skills to facilitate my understanding of my capabilities that can either make or break my future. I am resolved to act upon my weaknesses and inculcate skills that will enhance my growth and development in the employability area.

References

Allison, B., Hilton, A., O'Sullivan, T., Owen, A. and Rothwell, A., 2016. Research skills for students. Routledge.

Ceschi, A., Demerouti, E., Sartori, R. and Weller, J., 2017. Decision-making processes in the workplace: how exhaustion, lack of resources and job demands impair them and affect performance. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, p.313.

Okoro, E., Washington, M.C. and Thomas, O., 2017. The impact of interpersonal communication skills on organizational effectiveness and social self-efficacy: A synthesis. International Journal of Language and Linguistics, 4(3), pp.28-32.

Ranaut, B., 2018. Importance of good business writing skills. International Journal of Language and Linguistics, 5(2), pp.32-41.

Reyad, S., Badawi, S. and Hamdan, A., 2020. Assessing the impact of entrepreneurial skills development on self-employment practices amongst Egyptian and Bahraini accounting students in public and private universities. Journal of Islamic Accounting and Business Research.

Rubenstein, L.D., Callan, G.L., Ridgley, L.M. and Henderson, A., 2019. Students’ strategic planning and strategy use during creative problem solving: The importance of perspective-taking. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 34, p.100556.

Shoemaker, L.E., 2020. Employment of Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities: A Case Study of Time Management and Job Training Skills (Doctoral dissertation, Walden University).

WALKER, H., 2017. Leadership Techniques, Organizational Skills, and Interpersonal Relationships Affect Workplace Productivity.