Assignment 4A: Forming An Opportunity Belief

The SG Print Lab is an area on campus designated to provide students
with a much needed service. The Print Lab offers desktop computers,
as well as multiple printers in order to provide this service for UF
students. However, there are instances where the SG Print Lab is
swamped with UF Gators and the functionality of the service is rather
low in quality. It is a privilege to have such a resource on campus,
but when the purpose of the SG Print Lab is to increase the
accessibility of printing material that is needed for most courses,
time is of the essence!

The need for a decently paced line at the SG Print Lab has always
been a necessity. Though this is a necessity, not much has been done
to resolve this issue. By creating an application where students can
upload important documents to have them printed in advance would be a
great addition to the services provided by the SG Print Lab. If such
an application were to exist, students who need to print numerous
documents would have the opportunity to save time and skip the line.
Having a pick-up service would definitely bring forth change and help
limit the time spent in the printing lab. Overall, this would allow
the SG Print Lab to run more efficiently.

In order to explore the possibility of this proposal becoming a
reality, I have sought out students on campus who have agreed to
participate in an interview regarding this matter.

Student 1:

When asked to speak about their last visit to the SG Print Lab, this
student was concerned about the amount of time it took for their
documents to print out. The student is currently enrolled in Art
History 2 and has to print out readings for their class, as their
professor does not require a textbook. She had to print out multiple
handouts which were 30 pages in length on average.

When proposed with a solution to their unmet need, the student was
open to potential change of the services provided in the lab, as it
would save her time and allow her to have a sense of flexibility in
her daily schedule. The student is aware of the need only partially
since she is not always required to print multiple documents for all
of her courses. The need for saving time has always been a priority
of this student, therefore she addresses the need by arriving on
campus much sooner than her scheduled classes to accommodate for the
amount of time spent in the SG Print Lab. She was rather impressed by
the proposal and hopes that it becomes an attainable service for the
SG Print Lab.

Student 2:

When asked how they felt about the SG Print Lab, this student said
that it is great to have such an opportunity on campus. However, he
does not have an unmet need when it comes down to the services the SG
Print Lab provides. He has a printer in his bedroom and always has
access to printing essential material. He is not affected by the loss
of time due to the privilege of having a printer and fax machine in
his own home.

When proposed with a solution to an issue his peers may face, the
student was open to the proposal. The student believed that if there
is room for improvement in an area where a service is lacking, it
should be adjusted to accommodate for the unmet need of others.

Student 3:

When asked about their last visit to the SG Print Lab, the student
was oblivious as to what the SG Print Lab was. She was unaware of
this service provided to all UF students on campus. She did not have
an unmet need, as she had just learned of the service on campus.

Regardless of her not knowing much about the SG Print Lab, I shared
my proposal with her to get insight on the importance of the service.
She liked the idea but did not personally know whether or not it
would be effective in solving the issue with time spent in the Print
Lab. Though she knew very little information about the lab, this
young woman actively questioned my proposal for meeting an unmet
service. She stated that if the service is not necessarily broken,
then there is no need to fix it. I believe that she meant to point
out the fact that we are privileged to have a service on campus that
fills the need of printing material. Though it may not be as
efficient as it could be, the services provided at the SG Print Lab
are acceptable in their current state.

Reflection:

I learned a lot from reaching out to my peers about potentially
improving a service on campus. Some students were heavily
influenced by the unmet need, while others were not bothered by
it or unaware of the existence of this service. I was surprised
to learn that student 3 was unaware of the services available
to her as a UF student. It was more surprising that the student
who had no knowledge of the service had the most to say about my
proposal. She managed to challenge my way of thinking and helped
me realize an important aspect of this project. I realized that I
was simply trying to adjust a service that is not completely faulty.
If it isn't broken, don’t fix it.

Summary:

The opportunity belief I had in mind was changed by a customers interaction. Student 3 did well to challenge my proposal and made me question the likelihood of my proposal becoming a functional service to be offered at the SG Print Lab. Though this belief was challenged, I still believe that the original opportunity could be of use for those who utilize the service here on campus. The new opportunity can now be adjusted and therefore be more accurate than I had originally planned due to a consequence of an interaction with a customer.

If I were to revise my original belief, I would consider more
aspects, such as funding for the SG Print Lab and consideration of
who would be accommodating to the start up of this service. Those
who are currently employed at the SG Print Lab would have to take
on new job duties which may be stressful to employees if they are
not open to the proposal. Overall, the opportunity belief I
originally came up with remains. I still believe that this service
could be improved but there are other aspects to consider. I believe
that entrepreneurs should adapt their opportunities based off of
customer feedback in order to provide what the customer demands.
Entrepreneurs should not be single-minded, but open to change to
further improve the functionality of their proposals.