NU12 #3 - Professionalism – new work, methods,
practices: Gaining From Gaming (Arlo Cristobal)
I have a cousin who had a very promising childhood. He consistently
garnered high grades during his elementary years, but that was until he became
addicted to computer games. He still plays games and I
must say that he is really good at it. When he is playing, there is a high
level of concentration and focus that you wish he can apply to his studies
instead.
Instead of losing hope in him, why not just monetize his passion? Game
developers abroad spend a lot of money testing their products and hire players to
identify bugs and other areas of improvement of the game. Outsourcing isn't new
in our country and we also have a number of gaming aficionados here. With
cheaper labor, why not just employ my cousin and other folks with similar
passion to be game testers here in the Philippines. It can be a lucrative job since
there are a lot of game developing companies who release high-end games on a regular
basis. Instead of them wasting money in computer games, they will be doing it
for a profit. The set-up can also be a work from home situation to cut cost on
office space. They will be provided with a budget for computers and reimbursed
internet bills. The team would only have to meet once a week to talk about test
results and provide updates and feedbacks. This way, they will be exposed to an
office scene, while still being able to enjoy the games that they play. To add,
they can make game reviews or even publish a magazine where they can write their
experiences. <game testing for game addicts 4
NU12 #4 - New processes at work, study: More Fun in the Office (Arlo Cristobal)
Getting burned out from work is a common issue among employees. This is
the reason why a lot of companies spend heavily in work-life balance and teambuilding
efforts. As an alternative, the new work process I'd like to propose is a
monthly activity session that may or may not be related to work. This can bring
vigor and enthusiasm back to employees and they will also have something to
look forward to.
Examples of activities could be cycling, swimming, jogging or even a simple food tasting retreat. Each month, a group of people will give a list of activities which the employees can choose from and vote. The activity with the most votes will be selected for the month and the team will dedicate one day for that activity. If there are budget concerns, the activity can be a simple one like dry cooking in the pantry or board games day. This will keep employee morale high and will lighten up the mood in the office from time to time. It will also promote team camaraderie for better collaboration amongst teammates. And finally, for the employees, it will allow them to recharge and maybe, for some, discover a hobby that they might enjoy doing more often. Some of the activities I can think of include: cycling - those who have bikes can bring and share their bikes or the company can pair up with a bike rental facility, jogging - no expenses required, but a good venue has to be selected, actual photography session - those who have DSLR cameras can bring theirs and a group of folks will share their knowledge. The types of activities for this new process can only be bounded by the imagination, creativity and resourcefulness of the team. 3
NU12 #6 - New business ideas: An Eye for the
Eye (Arlo Cristobal)
Eye detector for sleepy driver - A lot of car
accidents happen because of drivers dozing off on the road. It's a very
alarming concern and more and more of my friends had admitted to have dozed off
while driving from work or from a late night out. This gave me an idea to
develop a product that detects eye behavior that is attached to an alarm. The
detector would monitor the eyes in real time, and then connected to an alarm to
wake up the driver when the eyes close. Eye detection is not a new technology.
It is already being used in mobile phones to check if the eyes are still
looking at the screen. With the price of modern cars, this additional
functionality would have a negligible cost to car companies but can be very
profitable to the seller of the device when patented. This safety feature may
even be eventually required to be fitted in cars, much like airbags and
seatbelts. 3 (but some of those who sleep while driving are like fishes - they sleep with their eyes wide open)
NU12 #7 - Serendipity walk – take a walk along a busy street near you. List down as many business opportunities you can think of. Just list down. (Arlo Cristobal)
Mckinley Road
·
Quick drink stop for joggers – McKinley hill is
filled with joggers at night. From experience, those who jog don’t enter
establishments to buy drinks since they are sweaty and are wearing exercise
clothes. One business opportunity is to have a small booth set-up along the
road, but still near the establishments, where joggers pass-by. This will be
very tempting to joggers and there will be a constant and targeted set of
customers during the “jogging hours.”
·
Healthy options – A lot of hole-in-the-wall
food stalls in McKinley are unhealthy (fried food, carb-loaded meals,
sugar-rich drinks). Back in Ateneo Loyola, there was a small store that sells
healthier food choices priced at par with those present in McKinley. This is a
good opportunity to sway people who would choose healthier food given the
choice and similar budget.
·
Jollibee delivery – This opportunity is a
simple one and suitable for me. Every day, I pass by Jollibee along C5 on my
way to work. Since there is no Jollibee anywhere near McKinley, there is a high
demand for Jollibee products from my coworkers. I can take advantage of this
situation by texting some of my friends who might be interested in ordering in
Jollibee. I can then do it for them when I pass by Jollibee and just charge
them a modest commission. 3
NU12 #12 - Business opportunities you can think
of, just list down (Arlo Cristobal)
·
Electricity harvester on a busy road/pedestrian
- We have solar panels, wind turbines, geothermal heat and other new emerging
sustainable sources of electricity. All these are difficult to harvest and
takes time to locate. Wind, water dam and geothermal sources of energy translate
energy sources to kinetic energy in the form of turbines. These turbines, in
effect, are used to generate and store electricity. Another source of kinetic
energy that is available is our bodies and the vehicles we drive. This kinetic
energy sources are quite abundant in busy roads and pedestrian.
The
process on how to harvest this energy is based on a similar concept: use the
movement driven by the source to spin the turbines. One simple way to do this
is to place turbines underground in the form of road bumps. The turbines can be
designed in such a. way that vehicles would hardly notice their presence in the
road. The same goes with busy pedestrians. The stairs or walkways can be fitted
with a smaller version of the system. Electricity generated from these systems
can be used to power traffic lights and street lights at night.
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