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My name is Elena and I own the business BAKE OR EAT SWEETS! I cater to all kinds of businesses and occasions with my decorated cookies. Sounds simple but they are not your basic pillsbury cookies. They are hand crafted , from scratch and personalized to your liking.
I am currently in the MAN2021 Principles of Management course at FSCJ. Here I will relate my struggles and successes as a young business owner to the course teachings of the week.

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"All too many managers are judged by the sheer number of hours they work and the tasks they accomplish. When people are too busy or overstressed by deadlines and scheduling pressures, however, their ability to think analytically and creatively is compromised."
I come across this problem often , I become focused on when to get orders done than to remember to be creative in my work.
https://hbr.org/2008/03/is-yours-a-learning-organization

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As a successful inventor, Steve Jobs has been an inspiration to everyone , no matter what business. Here are my top take aways from his legacy.

Be willing to fail : I have come across times where I would get a paragraph long review of how bad my cookies were. I still constantly think about it , even with a thousand followers , one bad review strangled me . Learning to fail is how businesses become successful , Jobs went from Rags to Riches, so I have faith that I can too.

Be Passionate: Passion drives creativity , it is why I am not a mass producing factory of cookies.

Simplicity : I cannot tell you how tired I am of making simplistic cookies - like a baby onesie or a sunflower. I long for those challenging projects that ask for godzilla on a tight rope or star wars cookies for a wedding. But customers know what they want and most times , its simplicity.

https://fowmedia.com/8-notsoobvious-lessons-apples-steve-jobs/

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Being a woman and owning a business has been interesting. I have had experiences of not being taken seriously because of my age and gender. I have been taken advantage of and used in some occasions. This shows how important it is for women  to advance into management. Not only for our understanding hearts but to inspire other women to not be afraid and to make ourselves do what we want and LOVE to do.

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In promoting your own career, you must be proactive and see yourself as a business that you are responsible for developing. You should not view your plan as limiting your options. First consider both your strengths and your liabilities and assess what you need from a career. Then explore all the avenues of opportunity open to you, both inside and outside the organization. Set your career goals, continually revise and update these goals as your career progresses, and take the steps necessary to accomplish these goals.

Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 16). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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Setting goals for your work is the most important thing you could do. This chart is my brain - My process for getting my business forward every day and being able to manage home and work life.
Here is how I break it down :

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1. Planning: Taking step by step with the customer on his/her needs  ; this includes finding photo examples , merging personal details into one concept ( IE: Farmhouse wedding, color purple, mason jars into one cookie) Also planning involves to do homework while cookies are drying or baking at night so that the electricity doesnt sky rocket during the day.

2. Organizing : Cookies is a multiple step process : icing needs to dry 10 hours in order to be bagged and delivered. But minimum of 2 day hands on decorating time to keep them fresh before heatsealing for ultimate freshness.

3. Influencing: This can be known as motivating , either myself or my mom that helps me . She runs on her own schedule so motivating her is quite the task !

4. Controlling : I am my owns biggest critic: Timing how long it takes me to make a batch of custom cookies versus the payment is how I control my situation and also check for quality.

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Mcdonalds is a perfect example of an American Business that has gone global. This is done by franchising , and "Franchising gives the restaurants local ownership that is attuned to local preferences while enabling McDonald’s to enforce quality standards and negotiate favorable agreements with suppliers."
But being American , the need to understand the needs of other countries is necessary for expansion and for adding new products to each countries menu for optimal satisfaction.
Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 79). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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Speaking of my own business, I am considered a Domestic Organization. Which means that I operate within a single country. Although sometimes we may occasionally make an international sale or gather supplies from a foreign supplier. For example, I have made custom cookies for a couple that lives in Korea , I do not offer international shipping but this couple lived at a Navy base in Korea . It was an international sale but to an American base. Other than that, the bulk of my business takes place here in the USA , and it is more geared towards selling locally to Jacksonville, Fl. Another feature of a Domestic Organizations is that it is very small - Like me!
Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 82). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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There have been jokes about me going on the show Shark Tank and becoming a Multinational company and make millions! That is just wishful thinking , But with my job - It is not "cookie cutter " Stuff. (no pun intended) Being the person that is the owner, accountant , creator and marketer makes everything much more difficult to assign jobs to other people. Im sure it is just the beginning process of having a small company but I consider my products to be artwork and so to become a big company It would not be as hands on and personal as I would like it to be.
Becoming a multinational company would involve planning* new ideas that would appeal to a countries culture and trends. I would need to have a variety of members  like Expatriates , Host-Country Nationals and , Third-country nationals to be able to gather information , manage stores and of course work. Host -Country Nationals would be my first pick since they are least expensive and do not have to go under training for the culture or laws.

Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 86). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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After the Discussion Board on the Marriott providing jobs to Haitians made me think of what I would have done in that situation. In my own line of work I do alot of Charity work , just because I am a sucker for a sad but great cause. I could see myself doing the same as the Marriott because it was a good deed and a great business idea. Being able to assist others with your business is how gaining wealth should be defined as. Not just because of the $$$.

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Web survey powered by SurveyMonkey.com. Create your own online survey now with SurveyMonkey's expert certified FREE templates.

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1. Definition of planning
2. Purposes of planning
3. Advantages and potential disadvantages of planning
4. Primacy of planning

Typically my Planning processes involves the following steps.
More specifically :
Making a list of orders for the week and what designs are involved. Step 2 are what techniques I will use to accomplish those orders (Ie: watercolor painting , outline and flood , or dip and decorate)
Step 3 is debate between making extras for quick sale or promote seasonal alternatives for that week.
Step 4. Is the elimination process of what alternatives I should toss or use.
Step 5 is strategic planning on how many to bake and ice in one day and how to pass through each order with keeping freshness in mind.
Finally , putting these works into action.
Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 107). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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There is no doubt that forecasting is one of my most difficult tasks of the job. People can be unpredictable in which makes my businesses suffer sometimes. In the book it is defined as" the process of predicting future environmental happenings that will influence the operation of the organization."
Well environmentally , there is not much of an effect on cookies , except for example the summer humidity may slow down production because icing takes longer to dry. Winter will cause production to be faster since turning the oven on isn't as expensive as turning it on in the summer.
As for predicting customer requests - One year I get one request for St. Patricks Day cookies and the next I have 5 dozen . So this teaches me to always be prepared with options and to keep up with the trends.

Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 117). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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A standing plan is used over and over again because it focuses on organizational situations that occur repeatedly.

Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 108). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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a nonprogrammed decision is typically a one-shot decision that is usually less structured than programmed decisions.

I find myself in this nonprogrammed decision making moments often. As the person that works production - to deliveries, many decisions are on a whim. For example : My biggest issue is making deliveries, many people are late , changes meeting places in the middle of my route , or dislike paying minimum delivery fees. It is definitely something I need to create a "standing plan " on . Traveling an hour to meet customers is taking a toll on my time and business. Some Nonprogrammed decisions are like a delay in one delivery causing a chain reaction in meeting the others. Takes a lot of on the spot thinking and planning.
Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 133). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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Differentation : Bake or Eat Sweets creates custom cookies , but they are more like works of art. They are not mass produced and they are made to order.
Cost Leadership : For the quality of work , I am priced lower than most places - this is because I want cookies to be accessable to all types of customers - not just for luxurious soirees.
Focus : We don't have a focus on what kind of customer, we mostly want to appeal to everyone.

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Delegation is the actual process of assigning job activities and corresponding authority to specific individuals within the organization.
As my own boss, the only delegation I do is when I have my mom help me - and this does not work very well . When telling someone to do a task when they are not very good at it ; it can slow production and the person can become uninterested.
Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 206). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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Distinguishing between responsibility and authority, a responsible person might not be the most authoritative person but be reasonable and skilled enough to be accountable. Authority is the power to command, judge, enforce laws, exact obedience.

Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 213). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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Describe the four steps in the human resource management process.
1. Recruitment 2. Selection 3. Training 4. Performance appraisal

Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 235). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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I have come across High stress levels when it comes to over working myself. Some symptoms include :
• Constant fatigue • Low energy • Moodiness • Increased aggression • Excessive use of alcohol • Temper outbursts • Compulsive eating • High levels of anxiety • Chronic worrying.
This usually happens after I complete a big order .
This was last November, I had a Christmas order of 100 boxes of 18 including logos of the company. I slept for days after that.

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1. It springs up and is used irregularly within the organization. 2. It is not controlled by top executives, who may not even be able to influence it. 3. It exists largely to serve the self-interests of the people within it.

Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 280). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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Marvin Gaye - I Heard It Through The Grapevine

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Some Characteristics include being good listeners , persuasive , being aware of your surroundings , empathetic , stewards.
-Would it be easy for you to be a “servant leader”? Why or why not?
I consider myself to be a Servant Leader because of my interest in everyones feelings. I like to play Oprah , I have seen a lot and experienced a lot so I feel like with my knowledge I can listen to other peoples concerns and be empathetic to others.

Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 312). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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Moral courage is the strength to take actions that are consistent with moral beliefs despite pressures, either inside or outside of the organization, to do otherwise.

Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 309). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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After reading the article, the CEO of Hewlett- Packard expressed poor leadership by failing to not being clear on his intentions and strategies. Not only that, he was unable to make the quarterly numbers for three quarters and also only consulted to a few people. This alone shows the lack of leadership because of the necessary trait of dependability being non existent.

I would say that his lack of dependability causes his subordinates to make decisions on their own , this can be both good but bad in this situation.

Servant Leaders are known to place high value on service to others over their own interests. I think this is where Apotheker is known to be a poor leader because he failed to get everyone on board with decisions for the company. His interest was more about himself and his ideas rather than expressing servant leadership by asking for other opinions in a timely matter.

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What three tips would you offer future managers?

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What three tips would you offer future managers?

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What three tips would you offer future managers?

1. As I say in Work Happy: What Great Bosses Know, “Change is the new normal,” so assume you will always be managing change. Learn to become an expert at it.

2. Know what you want to be known for. What skills? What values?

3. Remember: life’s too short to work with jerks. Build a jerk-free culture of excellence in your workplace. And have fun.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/danschawbel/2012/09/22/how-to-be-a-great-manager-that-employees-want-to-work-with/2/#4634cfeb5ed6

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Most of my business is done through Facebook in which is a simple way for me to build my business. Sometimes people try to contact me through my personal page but I have to redirect them the other.  In this article , It states that it is  "wiser to think of social media as an invitation to creative communication." I am on the verge of deciding whether to merge into an official website or stick with Facebook. I think it is a free way to access your customers and to see who they are and actually get to know them .
https://www.forbes.com/sites/danschawbel/2012/09/22/how-to-be-a-great-manager-that-employees-want-to-work-with/#70404eb35ad9

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What is the difference between a group and a team?
Not all groups are teams but all teams are groups. Group is a team only when members help each other to accomplish organizational objectives.

Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 361). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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Organization culture is a set of values that organization members share regarding the functioning and existence of their organization.
I would be considered a Market Culture. I like to primarily please my customers , especially first time customers with extras like extra designs or free gift wrapping. In a market culture world class quality and services is what we aim for. As well as tracking how we are doing compared to competitors.

Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 369). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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Seeing this on the chart reminded me of a section I had read from the book called "Business Boutique" It states that we need to clearly draw the line between hobby and business. In my case it is both , but I need to treat it less like a hobby because I can not splurge on supplies all the time or not charge for what I am worth.

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Just-in-time (JIT) inventory control is a technique for reducing inventories to a minimum by arranging for production components to be delivered to the production facility “just in time” for them to be used.

This strategy I have gotten alot better at , I am not sure if it is because i am running out of space or because Amazon is so fast. I buy boxes 200 at a time because of the price and that is how they are sold - I need a variety of box sizes for different orders , So imagine a living room full of bulky boxes. Now I opted for buying them when I need them and just using a different size box if I run out faster than expect.

Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 427). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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Ignoring the fact that budgets must be changed periodically—Managers should recognize that such factors as costs of materials, newly developed technology, and product demand change constantly and that budgets must be reviewed and modified periodically in response to those changes.

I find myself every year paying more and more for supplies. In the beginning it was because I wanted every gadget imaginable but now it is just expensive in general. I am not sure whether to raise or lower my pricing every time butter changes in price - it is a big determinant for the costs for making cookies but since butter is unpredicatable I will have to cut down on other supplies.
Certo, Samuel C.; Certo, S. Trevis (2015-01-06). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills (Page 430). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.

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Most of my supplies are from local busnesses , I find it very important to shop local especially when they have an etsy account. Etsy is like an Ebay but for handcrafters and creators. We can buy and sell directly from their shop - It is great to be close to manufacturers because like mentioned before - maybe you need something shipped fast and because of your history they will make it happen just for you .

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I enjoyed talking about my business in relation to this class, I find that education and hands on experience helps in making a business successful.
p.s. this was us winning 2nd place at the town hall of orange parks annual fall festival :D