4A – Forming An Opportunity Belief

1. I believe there is an opportunity to improve on campus parking at UF.

2. What: The unmet need is limited on campus parking
    Who:  Students, Staff, Visitors, Faculty, Transportation Department
    Where: The need came from an increase student population and in cars used by students, while there was no increase in parking infrastructure. This has not always been problem but has gotten worse as the school has grown.
    What now: Students and staff have to find alternate ways to get to campus.
     I am 85% sure this in an opportunity that exist.

3. The prototypical customer for this opportunity is college students and staff living close to campus who commute daily to campus.

4.
a. Interview Number 1: Maria Fe- Teacher Assistant and Third Year Student
Maria has been aware of the lack of parking on campus since she transferred to UF 2 years ago. Living far from campus, driving to class would be her preferred way to commute. Despite having a scooter, she rides the bus because she feels unsafe on scooters. Sometimes she will park on campus and risk getting a ticket if she is late for class.


b. Interview Number 2: Marcos - Second Year Student
Marcos has known about the parking problem since he first started attending UF, but did not experience it himself until he moved off campus his second year. Not being able to drive himself to his early morning class was inconvenient to him. As a result he had to ride the bus which is not always reliable to make it to class on time. Marcos did mention he prefers to ride a scooter to class but does not personally own one.

c. Interview Number 3: Bennett - Second Year Student-
Bennett hasn't had many issues with parking since attending. Living on campus both years has allowed him to have a parking decal to park on campus, while also living in close proximity to classes.

5. Reflect: As a former student who lived on campus, I agree that living on campus makes the parking problem not exist. It is mainly for students and staff who live far from campus. Scooters and buses seem to be alternatives to parking on campus.

7. Summarize: My original opportunity still exist, but I learned that it is only an issue for off campus students. I think my opportunity is more specific now than when I started. I think it is important to listen to customer feedback because they are the ones consuming your service/product.