"The Boss's Challenge"

The Challenge of a New Project

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With the morning coffee still lingering in the well-appointed conference room of MyBudget, the General Manager, Mr. Harris, looked at the two project managers, John and Timothy, sitting in front of him and said firmly, “Our new client, ‘Rent-a-Car’, wants an app that is not just for car rentals but also a smart profit-optimization tool.”

Timothy adjusted his glasses on his nose and asked,
— “Sir, are you talking about real-time pricing?”

“Absolutely!” — Mr. Harris smiled.

— “A sophisticated algorithm that will adjust the fare according to demand, peak-hours, off-peak-hours. At the same time, it will offer promotional offers in a way that does not reduce profits, it is a big challenge for you but I know you can do it.”

John, who is a bit more emotional by nature, a kind of excitement flared in the corners of his eyes.

— “Sir, we’ll do it.” As Mr. Harris left the room, John and Timothy began to discuss among themselves. John said, “Timothy, this is going to be our biggest project yet. Real-time pricing is a huge data science game, we don’t just have to build an app, we have to build an intelligent brain.”

Timothy said calmly

— “I know. But the first thing we need to do is create a clear roadmap, we need to have a meeting with the data science team, app developers, and UI/UX designers right away.”

Unexpected complications

Work continued in full swing over the next few weeks. The data science team began working on real-time traffic data, weather patterns, and historical demand data. John was regularly discussing the front-end of the app with the developers, while Timothy was busy with the back-end and the architecture of the algorithms.

One evening, Timothy called John to his cabin, a worried look on Timothy’s face.

— “John, there’s a problem with our algorithm.”

— “What’s the problem?” John was worried.

— “When demand suddenly drops during peak hours, our algorithm offers excessively low rates to maintain profit margins. While this may be a temporary gain, it risks damaging the company’s brand value in the long run.”

John sighed.

— “So, the algorithm will consider not only profit, but also brand image?”

— “Yes. We need to set a ‘floor price’ or minimum price limit, which cannot be exceeded under any circumstances, but the problem is, the rent-a-car company did not give us this data.”

Both of them were a little disappointed by this unexpected challenge.
John said, — “We have to talk to the client, there is no way to hide it. If they do not give us the right data, then this project will fail.”

Crisis solution

The next day, they met directly with the CEO of ‘Rent-a-Car’, John explained to them that in order to make the project successful, they needed some sensitive data that had not been given before.

The CEO was a little annoyed, — “Do you want our business secrets?”

Timothy calmly said, — “Sir, we just want our algorithm to work in a way that it not only makes money but also protects your brand value in the long run. If we set prices too low, people will think that your service is of poor quality. We are asking for the data to save you from this problem.”

Timothy’s reasoning got the CEO thinking. He finally agreed and handed over some important data files to them. These data files were their lowest price records for the last five years and some data related to special branding policies. After getting this new data, they started working again, Timothy re-arranged the algorithm, where a ‘price floor’ was added. John and his team designed the app’s user interface (UI) in such a way that before giving the user any promotional offer, a ‘pop-up’ notification appeared, which read,

— “We are offering this offer for your convenience, but please be aware of our standard pricing policy.”

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Final Results and Success

Finally, the project was completed, they handed over the app to the 'Rent-a-Car' company just before the scheduled time. They monitored the app's performance closely for the first few weeks. On the first day, during peak hours, when demand was at its peak, the app intelligently increased the rates, and during off-peak hours, when fares were usually lower, the algorithm only offered a limited offer, which in no way damaged the brand value of 'Rent-a-Car'. The biggest surprise was when a sudden strike broke out across the city, causing taxi and other ride-sharing app fares to skyrocket. The Rent-a-Car app immediately understood the demand and set the fare in such a way that it was slightly lower than any other ride-sharing platform, while still maintaining the company's profit. This not only increased the company's profits but also made 'Rent-a-Car' known to people as a reliable and fair-priced service. On this day of success, John and Timothy returned to Mr. Harris’s conference room. Mr. Harris looked at them and smiled. —

— “Your project was a great success. The CEO of the rent-a-car company called me and praised you very much. You didn’t just build an app, you built a brand.”

John and Timothy looked at each other and smiled. This project added a new dimension not only to their professional lives, but also to their personal relationships. They realized that when working as a team, every challenge opens new doors to success.

I invited three of my friends to join

@yousha4
@samin1
@abeed01

Thank You

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Steemit Challenge Season 26 Week-3: The Boss's Challenge

Dear @bokhtiar1444, below is the detailed assessment of your submission.

CriteriaMarksRemarks
Story start to finish4.6/5Good
Originality & Uniqueness2.9/3Good
Presentation0.7/1Satisfactory
My observation0.7/1You went against the rule and used headings.
Total8.9/10

Feedback

  • You added the algorithm flaw and client data conflict, which gave the story a unique twist but your story feels more like a realistic corporate success case than a creative piece of fiction. It's well written, but it doesn't really push the imagination or surprise in a way the contest instructions were asking for.

Moderated by: @waqarahmadshah