ENT3003: 4a Forming An Opportunity

Beginning Point: I have a belief that there is an opportunity to better handle the traffic in Gainesville around the UF campus once 5:00 pm rolls around on weekdays.

Describe your Belief: The unmet need for this problem is the amount of time it takes to simply drive 1 mile. The individuals who have this need are those who are trying to get home from their last class, professors attempting to get off of campus, and anyone simply trying to get from point A to point B. This need has been an issue for years, but with more and more students at UF every year, along with the accessibility of transportation avenues, this is going to be an issue if left unsolved. Currently people are doing their best to avoid this issue altogether, by not attempting to drive anywhere at this time.

Identify the Typical Customer: A UF student who lives off campus, a professor who lives off campus, any UF student trying to get across campus.

Iteration #1: Prototypical customer (UF student living in Broward Dorm). He claims the exact nature of the need is the time you spend trying to transport across campus, and how this is severely delayed due to the traffic. He experiences this need when he tries to bike from Broward Dorm to his fraternity house before dinner which is at 5:30 weekdays. He’s a freshman so he’s experienced the issue since being on campus last August. He’s addressing this need by biking to and from the fraternity house, rather than trying to catch a bus or a ride from a friend. He’s semi-satisfied with the issue, but he claims he’s doing his best with the issue that he can.

Reflection #1: I learned from this opportunity from a different perspective, how people are doing their best to divert the issue at hand. The most surprising thing I learned from this new perspective is that every single day this individual goes out into this traffic on Newell, and Museum Road and bears through it.

Identify the Typical Customer: A UF student who lives off campus, a professor who lives off campus, any UF student trying to get across campus.

Iteration #2: Prototypical customer (UF student that lives in Social 28, off campus). She claims the nature of the need is how hard it is to even get out of her apartment complex parking lot and onto SW 13th street, stops her from going out at rush hour. She experiences when she tries to drive on either SW 13th street or University street which connect the entire campus. She’s a junior, first year living off campus, so she’s experienced this perspective of the issue since August. She’s addressing this need by simply not driving her car on the main roads from 4:30-6:30 pm on weekdays when the buses run and everyone’s out on the street. She’s satisfied with the issue, realizing that this issue isn’t going to go away anytime soon.

Reflection #2: I learned from this opportunity from a perspective that was different from mine, how other students are solving this problem we all face. The most surprising thing I learned from this issue is that she refuses to drive at certain hours during the week, choosing to walk to her destination.

Identify the Typical Customer: A UF student who lives off campus, a professor who lives off campus, any UF student trying to get across campus.

Iteration #3: Prototypical customer (Macroeconomics Teacher Assistant, lives off campus). She claims the nature of the need is that when the clock strikes 5:00 on weekdays how log jam traffic initiates and it’s a pain until you reach Archer Road. She experiences this only when she is still on campus around these times on Tuesday & Thursday when she has her TA office hours later in the afternoon. She’s currently pursuing her Master’s of Science in Finance, so she’s experienced this issue since being a Freshman at UF. She’s addressing this issue by scheduling her office hours for earlier periods in the mornings rather than later periods. She’s not satisfied with the issue, and claims something needs to be done with the bus routes to face this issue.

Reflection #3: I learned from this opportunity from a very different perspective than my own, how older individuals are dealing with this issue. The most surprising thing I learned, was how a shift in schedule is the best solution for certain people to avoid the UF campus traffic during rush hour.

Summarize: Quite a bit of my original opportunity is still there; there is an overwhelming about of issues with the traffic that we face as students on campus and off campus that we cannot avoid. I don’t necessarily have a new opportunity, I’ve discussed with multiple individuals their method of diverting the issue, but simply avoiding the issue doesn’t solve anything. I do believe that there is trade off between adapting and staying firm due to the fact that many times, the customers in the markets dictate how prosperous your company can be.