Name: Mahmood AlSarhani

Student ID: 201100311

Word Count: 1199

Elective Cover Sheet

Assessment Title:

Assessment 1 Part 1 Report

Programme Title:

GENERAL STUDIES PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

Course No.:

GSP5203

Course Title:

Market Yourself

Student Name:

Mahmood AlSarhani

Student ID:

201100311

By submitting this assessment for marking, either electronically or as hard copy, I confirm the
following:

This assignment is my own work

Any information used has been properly referenced.
I understand that a copy of my work may be used for moderation.
I have kept a copy of this assignment

Name: Mahmood AlSarhani

Student ID: 201100311
Word Count: 1199

Table of Contents
1.

Research: .............................................................................................................................................. 1
1.1.

The Interview:............................................................................................................................... 3

1.2.

Independent Research: ................................................................................................................ 4

2.

Analysis: ................................................................................................................................................ 5

3.

Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................ 7

4.

References ............................................................................................................................................ 8

Name: Mahmood AlSarhani

Student ID: 201100311
Word Count: 1199

1. Research:
1.1. The Interview:
I have met with Mrs. Naquita Alsisi at Cine Caf in Reem Centre, at 10.00 am on Friday, 7th
November 2014. Mrs. Naquita is an entrepreneur and is currently working on establishing her
third business. The following are the Questions and Answers that have been presented in the
mentioned meeting:
A. Why did you choose to be an entrepreneur?
Answer: In the beginning, I used to be an employee working in AlHawaaj. I was working as
a member of the digital marketing team, and one of my main tasks was web development.
But I did not like the environment and I was not able to showcase all my abilities due to
restrictions of being an employee. Though, when I noticed that I had another stable
income through my family, I decided to become an entrepreneur and establish my own
business.

B. What does an entrepreneur exactly do?

Answer: Basically, an entrepreneur is a person who is responsible of establishing the
business, inspire and support others. A person who would do the jobs of many at the start.

C. What are the skills and qualifications that you had to enable you to be an
entrepreneur?
Answer: I was a Business graduate, which allowed me to be able to study and analyze the
market. I knew how to allocate budgets accordingly. Also, I had management skills to keep
a business alive. Aside from my studies, I also did some self-tutoring in Web Development.

D. What are the extra skills and qualifications that you needed to establish your business?
And how did you acquire them?
Answer: One of my most needed skills was photography skills, so I enrolled myself in
courses dedicated to that. I also required time management skills, which I obtained
through reading and researching. Knowledge about the Bahraini market was also a
valuable asset I needed, due to my studies being about international markets and not local
ones. Another requirement I thought was necessary, was Psychology, to better understand
what drives a customer, an employee and the community to further market myself and the
products.

E. What are the main challenges you have encountered while working as an
entrepreneur?

Name: Mahmood AlSarhani

Student ID: 201100311
Word Count: 1199
Answer: Time management was my biggest issue, as a result of me handling all the tasks by
myself. Also, being able to stabilize the income attained through my business while
predicting customer trends.

F. What would you recommend me if I wanted to be an entrepreneur myself?

Answer: I would recommend you to work in different positions to gain the maximum
amount of experience. Also, thoroughly study the field you desire to enter before starting
your business. Finally, I advise you to expect failure, but not to give up; however to learn
from it.

1.2. Independent Research:

An entrepreneur is a person who arranges and manages a business, while risking
himself/herself financially for the sake of profit. He/she is a leader that inspires others and
supports them to achieve a certain goal for the establishment. To become an entrepreneur,
many requirements must be met. As soon as he/she finds a stable income to help their
business like investors, family membersetc. They start on building their establishment and
seizing opportunities. The set of skills needed for an entrepreneur is never enough, the more
abilities the entrepreneur has; the easier his management will be. He/she needs time
management skills, financial management skills and many others. He/she also needs to cope
with many tasks that might include things they did not experience before, as so the person
needs to be always ready to learn and accomplish what is necessary. Some qualifications that
might help entrepreneurs include business knowledge, like market research, market planning,
sales and financing. These will help in developing the shape of the business desired and
determining how much opportunities that can be grasped. Other qualifications should be
related to the field the person wishes to start an organization in. Example, a graduate from the
ICT department should most probably open a business related to ICT. Competencies for the
position include, taking initiative, creativity and innovation, problem solving, persistence and
many more. Finally, an entrepreneur can be fulfilled by any person from any qualification; but
only dedicated people with many different skills, creative minds and who are willing to expand
themselves more will succeed in that position.

Name: Mahmood AlSarhani

Student ID: 201100311
Word Count: 1199

2. Analysis:
Research

The Interview
An entrepreneur is a
person who is
responsible of
establishing the business,
inspire and support
others.

Independent Research
An entrepreneur is a
person responsible for
achieving a businesss goal
by arranging and managing
it while taking financial
risks.

Job
Description

Skills Needed

Management
Skills
Financial Skills
Photography
Skills
Time
Management
Skills
Gathering
Information Skills
Problem Solving
Skills
Creative Thinking
Skills
Decision Making
Skills
Planning and
Organizing Skills

Management Skills
Financial Skills
Time Management
Skills
Gathering
Information Skills
Communication
Skills
Leadership Skills
Problem Solving
Skills
Creative Thinking
Skills
Decision Making
Skills
Planning and
Organizing Skills

The Analysis
Both seem to be similar
in the aspect of
establishing a business
but the research
suggested that an
entrepreneur is not just
the business owner,
he/she is also the
financial risk taker.
While in the interview,
she mentioned that the
entrepreneur is also a
person who inspires
others. I believe those
factors exist in all cases
but each did not
mention the other.
Both sources confirm
most of the others
listings but some
aspects depend on the
person himself/herself.
As an entrepreneur
does not require specific
skills, he/she requires as
much skills as possible.
Some skills can only be
useful when an
entrepreneur decides to
open a specific business
type with a specific
structure. Leadership is
useful when having
people working for the
person but not useful
when the business is
only run by one person,
like Mrs. Naquitas case.

Name: Mahmood AlSarhani

Student ID: 201100311
Word Count: 1199
Business
Graduate
Web
Development
Bahraini Market
Knowledge
Qualifications
Psychology

Some specific qualifications

are required, which mostly
include knowledge:

Business
Knowledge
Entrepreneurial
Knowledge
OpportunitySpecific Knowledge
Venture-Specific
Knowledge

Both sources affirm that

knowledge is the most
crucial element in being
an entrepreneur. But
most importantly is the
Business knowledge.
Others are determined
by which type of market
you are targeting.
Example, an ICT
graduate will target the
IT market due to his IT
knowledge regarding it.

Name: Mahmood AlSarhani

Student ID: 201100311
Word Count: 1199

3. Conclusion
In competency, I believe that being an entrepreneur is something I am not able to achieve at the
moment or when I graduate. It requires many skills and experiences I have yet to gain through working
in the market for some time, probably in different positions. For instance, planning and organizing skills,
as I have never had a job as a manager before. As for my qualifications, I am confident that being a
Management of Information Systems graduate could be my starting point for achieving this position as it
has an enormous range of opportunities yet to be seized. Example, an entrepreneur asks for learning a
variety of knowledge, which is what we mostly do; learn more. But to be able to fully achieve it, I
require more business knowledge and venture-specific knowledge which would help me in establishing
my business and finding a way to make it successful. Those I could also gain through working in different
jobs or taking courses/workshops.

Name: Mahmood AlSarhani

Student ID: 201100311
Word Count: 1199

4. References

Careers in Entrepreneurship: Skills and Requirements. (n.d.). Retrieved November 8, 2014, from
http://careers-in-business.com/enskill.htm
Entrepreneurial Competencies. (n.d.). Retrieved November 8, 2014, from
http://eshipnotes.wordpress.com/topics/class-xi/entrepreneurial-competencies/
Entrepreneurial Skills. (n.d.). Retrieved November 8, 2014, from
http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newCDV_76.htm
Krogue, K. (2013, July 3). What Is An Entrepreneur? Retrieved November 8, 2014, from
http://www.forbes.com/sites/kenkrogue/2013/07/03/what-is-an-entrepreneur/
Stephenson, J. (n.d.). 25 Common Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs. Retrieved
November 8, 2014, from http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/200730