Assignment 20A – Growing Your Social Capital

Domain expert

1) I reached out to Anne Ellig, Program Manager for the City of Stuart's Public Works Department.

2) Ms. Ellig fills the domain expert slot because she helps oversee programs that beautify the City of Stuart. She informed me that the City noticed a significant amount of unclaimed dog waste in common areas of Downtown Stuart. As a result, the City recently installed these receptacles around Downtown Stuart.

3) I reached out to Ms. Ellig via email.

4) In my email, I explained my fictitious business idea for this course, included the URLs to my idea napkin and elevator pitch assignments, and asked for her feedback. Ms. Ellig promptly responded with her feedback. There was no return expectation. 

5) Including Ms. Ellig in my network will enhance my ability to exploit this opportunity because she is knowledgeable about the type of product I hope to produce.

This experience shaped how I participate in networking events by encouraging me to reach out to professionals in my local community for feedback on this project. This networking experience was different because Ms. Ellig is the only person I reached out to who works for a municipality.

Market expert

1) I reached out to Dr. Christina Maldonado, who is a Veterinarian at Monterey Animal Clinic. 

2) Dr. Maldonado fills the slot of the market expert because a significant portion of her patient base is dogs and interacts with their owners daily. As a result, she is knowledgeable about the market I am trying to reach.

3) I reached out to Dr. Maldonado via email.

4) Like I did with Ms. Ellig, I sent Dr. Maldonado an email where I explained my project to her and asked for her feedback. There was no return expectation. 

5) As I previously mentioned, including Dr. Maldonado in my network will enhance my ability to exploit this opportunity because, as a Veterinarian, she has extensive knowledge of dogs and what their owners can do to properly care for them.

This experience shaped how I participate in networking events by validating that email can be an effective method of communication. This networking experience was somewhat similar to my first one because I asked for feedback through email. 

Supplier

1) I reached out to Jessica Gray, the Manager of my local Petco store. 

2) Ms. Gray fills the slot of the supplier because Petco sells a large variety of pet supplies, including dog waste bags.

3) I called and asked to speak with the Manager. 

4) I had a brief conversation with Ms. Gray, where I explained my project to her and asked for her feedback. She thought the "Doggie Dooty Station" is an interesting product. There was no return expectation.

5) Including Ms. Gray in my network will enhance my ability to exploit this opportunity because she manages a store that primarily sells pet products.

This experience shaped how I participate in networking events by "thinking outside of the box" of who would be a good supplier to reach out to for this assignment. This networking experience differs because I reached out to Ms. Gray via phone call.