The International entrepreneur is Oprah Winfrey. American television host, actress, producer,
philanthropist and entrepreneur Oprah Gail Winfrey was born on January 29,
1954, in Kosciusko, Mississippi. Born to an unwed teenage mother, Oprah Winfrey
spent her first years on her grandmother's farm in Kosciusko, Mississippi,
while her mother looked for work in the North. Life on the farm was primitive,
but her grandmother taught her to read at an early age, and at age three Oprah
was reciting poems and Bible verses in local churches. After a troubled
adolescence in a small farming community, where she was sexually abused by a
number of male relatives and friends of her mother, Vernita, she moved to
Nashville to live with her father, Vernon, a barber and businessman. She
entered Tennessee State University in 1971 and began working in radio and
television broadcasting in Nashville. At age 17, Oprah Winfrey won the Miss Black Tennessee beauty pageant and
was offered an on-air job at WVOL, a radio station serving the African American
community in Nashville. She also won a full scholarship to Tennessee State
University, where she majored in Speech Communications and Performing Arts.
In 1976, Oprah Winfrey moved to Baltimore,
Maryland, where she hosted the TV chat show “People Are Talking”.
The show became a hit and Winfrey stayed with it for eight years, after which
she was recruited by a Chicago TV station to host her own morning show, A.M. Chicago. Her major competitor in
the time slot was Phil Donahue. Within several months, Winfrey's open,
warm-hearted personal style had won her 100,000 more viewers than Donahue and
had taken her show from last place to first in the ratings. Her success led to
nationwide fame and a role in Steven Spielberg's 1985 film The Colour Purple,
for which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.
.
For skills and competencies, both
Entrepreneur have different and special skills and competencies. The skills and
competencies Dato’ Siti Nurhaliza Tarudin have is Versatility. The noun
versatility derives from the Latin word “Versatilis”, meaning “turning,
revolving, moving, and capable of or adapted for turning easily from one to
another of varied subjects or tasks.” Companies seek employees who have
versatility so that they can adapt to different work situations. The skills and
competencies of Dato’ Siti Nurhaliza Tarudin comes from Dato’ Siti Nurhaliza
Tarudin company, Siti Nurhaliza production (M) Sdn.Bhd. The efforts as well as
her first attempt to venture into the beauty business was a success. When the
product first marketed, it had a warm welcome in the market. Within two years,
the product range of skincare, perfume and make up kits have been all
introduced. A product or brand is going through a life cycle decreases when
passing maturities. But she can be an example of its power to delay the process
until a permanent reduction in the relatively long maturities. This shows that
she has the ability to produce a good product to increase business. Proven
ability when the products can compete with other brans that are popular in the
business industry. Dato’ Siti Nurhaliza Tarudin have her own versatility in
business. She has the ability to separate the business. We can see the result
of her own works. She can open her own company, which is very advanced, even
though she was a busy singer. Her success in managing the business shows that
she has the skills to build a business that is more advanced.
Next, the skills and
competencies Oprah Winfrey has is leadership. This
is what true authentic and transformational leaders do. They so subtly bestow
their talents and power, deliver their services, and share their expertise that
those being empowered, elevated, transformed and led don't even stop to
"feel" or "recognize" it happening! Transformative
leadership is all about elevating others. And the best way to do this is to
authentically concern yourself with the needs and potential of another. It involves
owing your power, selling your influence and demonstrating your credibility.
Power, this word, unfortunately, often gets negative connotations. But
without it - without power - you are not prepared to make things happen. People
who own their power have the freedom, the independence and the authority to
make things happen. These people are able to effect change. The more power you
own, the more equipped you are to transform others and turn around struggling
cultures and organizations. Influence is simply an element of
power which causes changes and affects people, things or events. It is the
ability to sway, persuade or affect others without relying on force or formal
authority. Credibility is the quality or
capability to elicit belief, trust and confidence from others. It is what is
reflected when others find that you have a standing or serve as an authority on
any issue. How do you feel when other people believe in you, trust in you, and
are confident in you? The genius of this great
leader Oprah Winfrey, a woman, a black woman was once impoverished individual who
had been sexually assaulted and challenged in ways that some of her male
counterparts cannot even imagine! But this is not about being against male
leaders. I honor plenty of them.
Next, the challenges for entrepreneurs are also very important for them to go through. Challenges
that were encountered by the Datin Sri Dato' Siti Nurhaliza Tarudin Siti
Nurhaliza has been encountered many challenges to becoming an entrepreneur. From
a village girl with financial constraint, she managed to be listed in Asian
Richest Artists. Before that, she being look up by people because she born to a
poor family. She also faced language barriers before, she could not manage to
speak a very proper English since her mother language is Malay. After that, she
started to work harder to improve her English language to overcome her language
barriers, so that she could have better communication with others. Despite her
language barriers, she managed to come out with a full English album. Besides,
she also managed to control all controversy that happened to her. Next,
educational barrier is also one of the challenges she had. She could not get
better education during her childhood life, due to her poor family. But she's
never give up and keep learning more and more, to get what she wanted. Despite
of her educational background, she managed to be the CEO of two companies.
Then,
her new album was previously claimed to be a traditional album but due to lack
of materials, she moved on with producing another pop album. The traditional
album is now slated for a 2008 release, as stated by Siti herself. Despite
being at the peak of her career, Siti Nurhaliza places great emphasis on the
community and social issues. She also never give up on anything. She
scarified her young age to work hard to achieve all her dreams. Eventually, Siti
Nurhaliza is also an entrepreneur who has ventured into business to look after
the well being of her family.
Secondly, Oprah Winfrey also become a success entrepreneur from overcoming a lot of challenges.Oprah
Winfrey is a powerful woman. But, her success has come at the end of a long
road of other extremes: obstacles. From sexual molestation to drug abuse to
racism, she has endured an inordinate amount of both personal and professional
challenges on her path to become the richest woman in America. Born as a poor,
dark, and out of wedlock child, Oprah already had the odds stacked against her.
Also, born to unmarried parents, she was raised by her maternal grandmother on
an isolated Mississippi farm, by her mother in a Milwaukee ghetto, and finally
by her father in Nashville. From her childhood, Oprah displayed a
precocious talent for public speaking, and at the age of twelve. Besides, Oprah
turned to a life of rebellion and drugs, raped at the age of nine and sexually
harassed by family members for the next four years. Until she live with her
father who imposed strict discipline on the young Oprah and encouraged her
education that she began to turn her life around. After that, she overcame the
mental trauma of harassment and went on to win a scholarship at a reputable
university with a renewed focus on school and the encouragement of her father. The
significant challenges that Oprah overcame, ranging from economic hardship to
sexual abuse enabled the talk-show host to connect with her guests and the
public. Besides, The Oprah Winfrey Show has blossomed from a forum for
conversation to a proactive instrument for addressing issues of social and
personal concern. On the other hand, while her sense of
compassion was a detriment in her first career as news anchor with WJZ-TV in
Baltimore—she was fired for being too emotional while reporting stories—it did
allow her to excel in all her other career ventures, she learnt empathy from
there.
For achievements, Siti
Nurhaliza is one of the best-selling and most well-known artists in the Malay
Archipelago and Nusantara region. She has been Malaysia's most award winning
artist when her record was included in the Malaysia Book of Records in 2001. First
organised in 2001, Anugerah ERA is an award ceremony that was throwned by one
of Malaysia's radio company, Era FM annually from 2001 until 2007. The show was
somehow absent for years of 2008 and 2009. Artistes were voted through SMS,
phone call, and also through online and manual form, which can be faxed or mailed
to their head office. She also holds the record of highest amount of winning
for the category of Vokal Wanita Pilihan (Best Choice for Female Vocalist) with
five times winning. Anugerah Industri Muzik (AIM) is an annual event similar to
Grammy Awards which recognised Malaysia's finest artists. Since her
participation in 1997 with her debut single, Jerat Percintaan, she has won 34
awards, where she holds the record of highest frequency of winning Persembahan
Vokal Terbaik di Dalam Album/Lagu (Wanita) (Best Vocal Performance in an
Album/Song (Female)) with 12 times winning out of 16 years of participation
with some of the years with multiple nominations in the same category. She also
holds the record of winning the most in the category of Album Terbaik (Best
Album) with six times winning out of seven nominations. Anugerah Juara Lagu
(AJL) is a yearly event which recognised the musical composition of a song
based on the collaborations of three parties - lyricist, composer and the
artiste. Its weekly programme will gather singles and songs nominations from
various artistes where they will compete till their songs will be included as
the finalists before ultimately nominated to be judged by professional judges. However,
from 2009 onwards, all of the categories were revamped and all final 12
finalists were made to compete against each other with no category limitations.
Siti Nurhaliza holds three records of AJL- most times of overall winning (three
times), most number of songs and singles participate in the finals (18 songs)
and artistes with the highest frequency of winning Persembahan Terbaik (Best
Performance) with five times winning. In addition, her winning performance of
Cindai during the final of AJL in 1998 won the title Champion of Champions
where all past winners from 1986 till 2004 were voted by the viewers in 2006. Throughout
her career, Siti Nurhaliza's songs have been covered by other artists,
including her first Malay traditional single, Cindai which was re-recorded in
Chinese version by Chien Bai Hui, a Chinese singer, with also re-recorded Bukan
Cinta Biasa and Tirai Semalam in Chinese version. Her song Cinta Tak Berganti
from Prasasti Seni also re-recorded by the Dutch band After Touch. By far, she
has been thrice to be invited to perform at the MTV Asia Awards, which are in
2003, where she sang her debut, Bukan Cinta Biasa, in 2004 where she performed
together with Gareth Gates and her 2005 solo performance with Seindah Biasa,
one of her singles from her tenth solo album, Prasasti Seni. However, one of
her earliest performances at an international stage is during the closing
ceremony of 1998 Commonwealth Games where it was watched by more than 70
countries when she was only 19. She also has performed in Australia, Brunei,
China, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and United
Kingdom. In March 2000, her first concert ever outside the Malaysian market in
Singapore at Harbour Pavilion managed to outsold Mariah Carey's Rainbow World
Tour which was scheduled five days earlier even though the most expensive
tickets price was much higher than Carey's. In May 2006, she was offered to
perform together with Indian Bollywood star, Shah Rukh Khan in front of 300
Bollywood artists and guests along with 2.6 billion television viewers where
she will be performing at 2nd Global Indian Film Awards 2006 in Kuala Lumpur. However,
the offer later was cancelled by Siti due to her commitment with other projects
after informing the organizers beforehand.
Winfrey
was called "arguably the world's most powerful woman" by The American
Spectator, and “one of the most influential people” from 2004 to 2011 by TIME.
She is the only person in the world to have appeared in the latter list on ten
occasions. Before that, in 10970, she won a scholarship to Tennessee State
University based on her communication skills and worked at the WVOL local radio
station whilst attending the University. In January 1984, she was invited to
Chicago to host a faltering half-hour morning program on WLS-TV. In less than a
year, she turned AM Chicago into the hottest show in town. The format was soon
expanded to an hour, and in September 1985 it was renamed The Oprah Winfrey
Show. The following year, the show received its second consecutive Emmy as
Outstanding Talk, and Oprah herself received the International Radio and
Television Society's "Broadcaster of the Year" Award. She was the
youngest person ever to receive the honor.
By
the time America fell in love with Oprah Winfrey the talk show host, she had
already captured the nation's attention with her poignant portrayal of Sofia in
Steven Spielberg's 1985. In 1998, she also received a Lifetime Achievement
Award from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. Her influence over
the publishing industry exploded when she began her on-air book club in 1996.
"Oprah Book Club" selections became instant bestsellers, and in 1999
Winfrey received the National Book Foundation's 50th anniversary gold medal for
her service to books and authors. Besides, Oprah Winfrey's business interests
have extended well beyond her own production company. With her success,
she has also become one of the world's most generous philanthropists. The launch of her
first magazine was the most successful start-up in the history of the industry.
In 2002, Oprah received the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award at the 2002 Emmy Awards
for her services to television and film. Oprah Winfrey was also the first black
person listed by Business Week as one of America’s top 50 most generous
philanthropists. Her
efforts of investing 40 million and creating the Oprah Winfrey Leadership
Academy for Girls near Johannesburg in South Africa, which started in January
2007 were acknowledged by Nelson Mandela who congratulated her for overcoming
her own disadvantaged youth; and to become a benefactor for others and for
investing in the future of South Africa. Besides, she is also the first black
American woman billionaire and reportedly makes about half a million dollars a
day from her TV show alone.
On
the business accomplishments, she owns or co-owns the Oxygen Network, O
Magazine, her own Harpo Studio, Harpo Productions, Harpo Films, Harpo Print,
Harpo Video, and the Oprah Winfrey Network. Harpo, is Oprah spelled backwards.
