In January, a group of MBA students from the Cal State Fullerton College of Business and Economics supported aspiring entrepreneurs in the Central American nation of Panama.
Advised by Eric Setten, assistant professor of marketing, the students were divided into two teams, and each team worked with a micro-enterprise owner. One group of students helped a client grow their chicken meat business by adding fans and heat lamps to allow the owner to raise 1,000 head of Cornish Cross chickens during the offseason, creating a competitive advantage. The other group focused on making crocheted earrings and developing a brand and Instagram presence to differentiate the client’s products from the competition.
Over five days, the student teams met with their clients, understanding their needs and desires for growth with the help of Spanish language translators. Using knowledge gained through Cal State Fullerton graduate coursework and their own work experience, the MBA students developed strategies to help their clients achieve their goals. The teams were given a $200 capital improvement budget to purchase materials to make their strategies a reality.
“For the chicken business, the students helped get the operation more climate controlled. The team purchased fans to help with the humidity and heat in Panama, which isn’t healthy for chickens during the peak of the hot season. They also purchased heat lamps to allow their client to raise more chickens during the cool season when there is still demand, but very little supply,” said Setten. “The students also helped the owner with an app so she could track her expenses, helping her upgrade from a paper system. At the end of the year, she will be able to buy a new chicken house for increased capacity, thanks to a savings of $30 per month.”
For the client making earrings, the main concern was profitably growing her business. The students helped with bookkeeping, accounting and branding. “The client was experiencing other entrants coming into the market, so the students set her up with a logo, Instagram with the first nine posts, and branded polo shirts and banner, along with a cash box,” said Setten. “It was exciting watching the students work on these projects. At the end, we did presentations in Spanish. Our MBA students were exposed to issues and problems they couldn’t conceptualize in the classroom and with America’s business environment.”
Read more about this service learning project on CSUF Business News.