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Boston Duck Tours

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UNIVERSITY OF CAPE COAST
COLLEGE OF HUMANITIES AND LEGAL STUDIES
SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES

NAME: KWAME ODOOM
INDEX NUMBER: SB/SEM/15/0002
LECTURER: MR. F. O. BOACHIE MENSAH
COURSE: STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT IN SMALL FIRMS

ASSIGNMENT CASE STUDY
“BOSTON DUCK TOURS”

QUESTIONS 1. What is Andy Wilson’s primary motivation for leading an entrepreneurial life? 2. What kind of entrepreneurial venture is Boston Duck Tours? 3. Describe the competitive advantage of Boston Duck Tours. 4. What characteristics of successful entrepreneurs does Andy Wilson embody?

ANSWERS 1. The primary motivation for Andy Wilson, the founder of Boston Duck Tours for leading and entrepreneurial life was the fact that he wanted to be his own boss. The case alludes to the fact that “having worked for seven years in an investment banking firm, Wilson was no longer motivated by the suit-and-tie atmosphere of corporate America.” As a potential entrepreneur, he was also motivated by the zeal to exploit the window of opportunity in the tourism industry. The case recounts Wilson’s experience by saying that “His first trolley tour, which he called “such a pathetic experience,” gave him the determination to keep pushing forward.” As a result, it is seemingly clear that the boring nature of “the suit-and-tie atmosphere of corporate America” together with a clear open window of opportunity gave Andy Wilson the motivation to lead such as successful but challenging entrepreneurial life.

2. Steve Blank in 2011 on “Startup America – Dead on Arrival” published four types of entrepreneurship, namely; Small Business Entrepreneurship, Scalable Startup Entrepreneurship, Social Entrepreneurship and Large Business Entrepreneurship. Though Blank states that there are 5.7 million small businesses in the U.S. making up 99.7% of all companies and

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