...Environmental Scan Paper MGT/498 July 22, 2015 Environmental Scan Paper The evaluating, monitoring, and disseminating of information from internal and external environments to key people within the corporation is called environmental scanning. (Wheelen and Hunger. 2010) Environmental scanning helps an organization identify relevant factors and use those factors to obtain a competitive advantage within the environment. The author will discuss how an organization creates value and sustains a competitive advantage through strategies. How an organization measures success to identify the effectiveness of a strategy. The author will identify the strategies of various companies and identify tactics that make the company successful. Competitive Advantage An organization that has a strategic advantage over its competitors that enables the organization to have greater sales and retain more customers is believed to have a competitive advantage. Many organizations have a competitive advantage within technological industries to include: Google, Apple, and Amazon. Each organization creates value in its products and services to stay ahead of the competition. Google is considered the industry leader when it comes to search and has 65% of the search market, according to Hit Wise. The company maintains its competitive advantage by developing a diversified infrastructure that gives them the ability to provide high-speed searches and branch out into other industries. Goggles infrastructure...
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...Environmental Scan Paper Environmental Scan Paper According to BusinessDictionary.com, “an environmental scan is the vigilant monitoring and evaluation of a firm’s external and internal environments for detecting early signs of opportunities and threats that may influence current and future plans” (BusinessDictionary.com, 2011). In strategic planning, an environmental scan can help an organization increase understanding of the internal and external environmental factors that are required to reach the long-term goals of the company. This paper’s purpose is recognizing and exploring the external and internal situations of two successful organizations, Apple and Coca Cola. Also, to examine the competitive advantages and strategies used by these organizations, as well as sustaining value in an increasingly competitive market through creative strategic business plans. Another area being explored is the measurement guidelines used to substantiate the strategic effectiveness for these organizations and the effectiveness of these measurement guidelines. Internal and External Environments The whole process can be seen as beneficial knowledge for managers wishing to increase the long-term efficiency and develop strategic plans for the business. An organization’s environment can be broken into two separate divisions. First, the internal environment which is generally compiled of the factors or elements directly involved within the company. This would basically include the managers...
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...Environmental Scan Paper Tyrone Brown MGT/498 April 8 2013 John Gaze Environmental Scan Paper In today’s paper I intend to take an in depth look into two organizations and conduct an environmental scan on both companies. An internal and external scan on the companies will be used in determining what type of competitive advantages each company has in their perspective market. I also intend to look at the different types of strategies each companies use to meet their goals. I also intend to answer how each company sustain the competitive advantage and create value through business strategies. A brief discussion on the measurement guidelines each company follows in order to verify its strategic effectiveness will follow. Finally I will determine how effective the measurement guidelines that each company is using. Environmental Scan The first company I chose to discuss about their internal and external environmental scans is Starbucks. Many people throughout the world are familiar with Starbucks and the types of products they sell. Since their beginning in 1985 Starbucks has only grown as far as the growth of the company and sells. Starbucks offers premium coffee, tasty pastries, high quality coffee beans that consumers can buy to take home to brew themselves. While conducting my environmental scan I first began to look at the gender of the customers coming in to the establishment to purchase their Latte’s, Espressos’, and Danishes. I myself prefer to go without the coffee...
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...Environmental Scan Paper MGT 498 Environmental Scan All businesses regardless of their particular industry will be faced with the challenges of dealing with different environments. A couple of companies that will be discussed throughout this paper are Apple, Inc. (Apple) and Dell, Inc. (Dell). Both are successful technological companies. Operating in the technology field they pay a great deal of attention to technological factors and trends in the industry. Their internal and external environments can be scanned and evaluated using the PESTEL tool and Porter’s value chain. Using the PESTEL tool will help them identify opportunities and threats that they might encounter. Using the Porter value chain will help them identify and separate strengths and weaknesses each has. According to Apple they are a worldwide company that produces consumer electronics, computer software, and commercial servers. Apple’s main product lines include the iPad, iPhones, iPod music player, and the Macintosh computer. In April 1976 Apple’s founders Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak produced the first Apple Computer with their introduction of the Apple I. They incorporated their company in January 1977 in California and have been in business for over 30 years. Apple has had an up and down track record over that time period but also several proven successful products and brands. They also have demonstrated continual innovation despite some down turns and rough times. The death of Steve Jobs in 2011...
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...Environmental Scan Paper Jessica Swindler MGT 498 April 7th, 2015 T. Dunning Environmental Scan Paper A strategic plan helps a company excel during good times and maneuver through tough times. However, having a plan does not always determine the direction the company will go, the strategic plan is more like a map or GPS for the company. There are tons of other variables that drive a company. For instance, having great internal and external environments play a role on how the company will progress. The internal environment entails employees, management, the work culture/mission, and ethics. These components help make or break a company’s morale. If your company’s environment is unhealthy, then it is very possible the strategic plans that would be implemented improperly. The external environment is very important in a company as well, these are variables that occur outside the companies facilities that alter the company’s plans. Companies take their environments’ very seriously, there is a process call environmental scanning which, is an analysis of a company’s internal and external environments. Two companies that were recently researched using an environmental scan were Time Warner Cable and Nike. After an environmental scan it is possible to analyze the competitive advantage of Time Warner Cable and Nike. While, analyzing the competitive advantage, it is possible to see the value and effectiveness of Time Warner Cable and Nike’s business strategies. These two companies...
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...Environmental Scan Paper Aude Marie Nugent MGT/498 September 15, 2013 John Vincent Environmental Scan Paper What is environmental scanning? According to (Wheelen & Hunger, 2010, pg. 98), “Environmental scanning is the monitoring, evaluation, and dissemination of information from the external and internal environments to key people within the corporation.” The external and internal elements that form an organization assist in determining the rate of an organization’s success and failure. Organizations yearn to have the knowledge that is needed in order to stay afloat with the ever so changing market and of course with the evolving world. In order for an organization to be successful in their market, it requires an environmental scanning to be completed so the organization can analyze their internal and external environment. Companies Using an Environmental Scan The two real-world environments that Aude will be using that utilize an environmental scan are Apple, Inc and Wal-Mart. Aude will start with Apple, Inc. Apple, Inc has been very successful with the technology industry due to their innovative ideas and the ability Apple has to their ideas come to life, which displays a very strong business strategy. Apple, Inc’s business strategy involves a very meticulous scan of the internal and external environments that affect the organization. Apple has shown over and over again their ability to get the attention of their consumer, both the younger generation and older...
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...Environmental Scan Paper Environmental scans are critical to have in the business industry. An environmental scan is an examination of the internal and external environment of the organization. It is necessary to conduct an environmental scan in order to determine the organization’s goals and what steps to take to reach those goals. Environment scanning is processed to determine development and forecasts of elements that will influence the success of the business. According to an article by (Environmental Scanning - Internal & External Analysis of Environment, 2013). Environmental scanning refers to possession and utilization of information about occasions, patterns, trends, and relationships within an organization’s internal and external environment. Organizations can identify any competitive advantages with an environmental scan. The environmental scan can also help guide in creating a business strategy in which it will help add value to the company and overcome competition by identifying opportunities and minimizing threats. Internal and External Environments Organizations should focus first on the internal analysis of the environment. Internal scan involves observation of teams, employee interaction, brand awareness, organizational structure, operations, training, etc. The internal analysis helps to identify strengths and weaknesses of an organization. Internal factors can be controlled by the business; some factors include business image, reputation, management structure...
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...Environmental Scan Paper MGT/498 June 18, 2015 Environmental Scan Paper The purpose of an environmental scan is to examine the internal and external environment of a company, in an effort to identify needs, plan improvement tasks and monitor the changes. This process is essential when the company is planning to conduct a reorganization in an effort to improve productivity and reduce costs. If the environmental scan is conducted properly, it will help to align the organization with the desired objectives of the company. On a positive note, the environmental scan can point out competitive advantages and strategies currently in place. The scan is a pretty well-rounded in that it can also assist in the creation of business strategies, which will continue benefit the organization and keep it at a competitive level. The final area that the environmental scan benefits the organization is in the monitor and control region. The process reviews the methods in which the company measures the effectiveness of the strategies in place. Internal and External Environments Completing the environment scan aids in identifying the organization’s in-house needs, assets, and values. The scan will also provide insight into the external environment (the industry) that the company operates within. Ultimately, the scan will help the company form a vision while also identifying their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) (Barnat, 2014). A SWOT analysis uses internal and external...
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...Environmental Scan Paper MGT/498 December 10, 2014 Dr. Pamela Linden Environmental Scan Paper Environmental scanning plays a critical role in the strategic management planning process. The environmental scan provides important information, which may be useful in forecasting changes for the future. Environmental scanning is, “the monitoring, evaluation, and dissemination of information from the external and internal environments to key people within the organization.” (Wheelen and Hunger, Ch.4, Sec. 4.1) Managers scan the internal environment for strengths and weaknesses and the external environment for opportunities and threats. Strengths and weaknesses can be found within the company structure, as well as the employee pool. Scanning the external environment can expose the company to opportunities not yet taken advantage of by other companies. This external scan can also bring light to threats from other organizations in respect to products, services, and costs. Starbucks was founded in 1971 when the first coffee store was opened, and became the competitive company it is today when expansion began in 1987. Starbucks’ mission is “to inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup, and one neighborhood at a time.” (Starbucks, Our Heritage, 2014) Internal factors affecting Starbucks’ product decisions involve environmental aspects such as where their coffee beans are farmed and the cost of those beans. If the farmers have issues with their beans, this...
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...University of Phoenix Nana Offei MGT498 Strategic Management Abstract Environmental scan is the vigilant monitoring and evaluation of a firm’s external and internal environments for detecting early signs of opportunities and threats that may influence current and future plans. In strategic planning, an environmental scan can help an organization increase understanding of the internal and external environmental factors that will require reaching the long term goals of the company. Pepsi and Coca-Cola serve as prime examples of major competitors in the beverage industry and strive to be different although each company produces a similar product. With the popularity of these corporations at the zenith of existence, each needs to develop and maintain a competitive advantage that will yield results to their favor. For the purpose of gaining a competitive advantage measurement guidelines will need to be implemented to cultivate effective strategic planning and measure the effectiveness of each plan. The intention of this paper is to research and describe the internal and external to reach a company in order to describe the internal and external environments of each and develop an understanding of how each company uses environmental scanning. Furthermore, a discovery of competitive advantages will be uncovered by examining strategies, such as creation of value and sustain, measurement guidelines, and the effectiveness of the measurement guidelines used by each company ...
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...Environmental Scan Erick Duran MGT/498 September 11, 2013 Craig Clark Environmental Scan Successful businesses take a lot of time to sit back and analyze the status of their companies throughout its life. Markets are constantly changing and businesses have to take close looks at how they must adapt to stay in the minds of their consumers. Strategic management gives each company a way of going through a thorough dissection of the current status and helps them get to where they need to be. The Environmental scan is the beginning of the strategic management process. This process involves the monitoring, evaluating, and disseminating of the information from the external and internal environments to key people within the organization (Wheelan & Hunger, p. 19, 2010).The purpose of this step in the process is to disseminate the strategic factors, whether they be internal or external factors that will help the company in the future.A SWOT analysis or analysis of the company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats is the most effective way for a business to target the strategic factors of a company. Fresh and Easy is a chain of groceries stores that has had trouble making the cut since 2007. It came in with a fresh approach on the groceries store technique but has been struggling to stay afloat since the United Kingdom’s Tesco brought their brand of chains to the United States (Thesig, 2013). They offer food that is ready to go and only sell fresh products...
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...Travis Ririe Ethics Paper MGT/498 Kathleen Collins Introduction Understanding the role of ethics and social responsibility when developing a strategic plan are essential to a company’s ultimate success in both the short and long-term. The ethics of a company and the stance it takes in terms of social responsibility will help define how its decisions will be made. All stakeholders within the company will need to decide what type of an organization the company will be when developing a strategic plan because the organization will ultimately be judged by it once a stance and decision have been made. This could potentially leave a positive or negative impact on the company depending upon its ethical stance and how well the organization manages its public relations communications as the need arises. Stakeholders When considering the ethics and social responsibility of an organization, the organization should consider the effects such decisions will have on the stakeholders. Stakeholders are both internal and external people or organizations that will be affected by the decisions and strategic plans of the company. Stakeholders can be people or companies invested in the company, employees, and even consumers. The agenda of all these people and groups need to be considered when deciding what is ethical and socially responsible for the company because all of these people are invested in the success and failure of the company. These stakeholders also want to be properly represented...
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...Environmental Scan Barbara Hicks MGT/498 October 26, 2015 Environmental Scan The perception of environmental scanning is important to the short term and long-term success of a business. The environmental scan continued use by present and future businesses to scan, examine, calculate, and project the internal and external elements of their marketplace. Companies use a SWOT Analysis to establish the performance of the markets environment. The company will analyze consumer and competitor’s behaviors, trends, strengths and weaknesses in the market. Performing an environmental scanning and SWOT Analysis is vital to an organization’s success. SWOT Analysis A) give a detailed assessment of the opportunities, trends, and consumer existing in their market environment. B) Establishes an awareness of their markets environment so that their company can increase the strategic planning and decision-making process. (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, n.d.). C) Establish the internal resources needed to achieve their organizational goals and objectives. D) Establish the vision and strengths to identify the companies’ strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. (CPS Human Resource Services, 2007). To show the importance of environmental scanning and the competitive advantages that could arrive from using this assessment tool, this paper will conduct an environmental scan on Nike Inc., and A.O. Smith Water Products Company. The environmental scans of...
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...Environmental Scan Paper The business environment of an organization reveals much about its competitiveness and the possible influences on the success of its strategies. The focus of this paper will be an environmental scan of the internal and external environments of two real-world firms, their competitive advantages and company strategies for creating value and sustaining competitiveness, measurement guidelines for verifying strategic effectiveness and their evaluation. Internal and External Environments Environmental scanning of the internal organizational environment focuses on company culture, employee-employee, manager-employee, and manager-manager, manager-shareholder interactions, in addition to organizational structure, natural resources’ access and brand awareness, among others (Schneider, 1995, p.70). Environmental scanning of the external organizational environment focuses on the analysis of the industry/immediate environment, national, and macro-environments. Analysis of the industry environment appraises the competitive Environmental Scan Paper The business environment of an organization reveals much about its competitiveness and the possible influences on the success of its strategies. The focus of this paper will be an environmental scan of the internal and external environments of two real-world firms, their competitive advantages and company strategies for creating value and sustaining competitiveness, measurement guidelines for verifying strategic...
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...Environmental Scan Paper Environmental Scan Paper Environmental Scan Paper According to BusinessDictionary.com, “an environmental scan is the vigilant monitoring and evaluation of a firm’s external and internal environments for detecting early signs of opportunities and threats that may influence current and future plans” (BusinessDictionary.com, 2011). In strategic planning, an environmental scan can help an organization increase understanding of the internal and external environmental factors that are required to reach the long-term goals of the company. This paper’s purpose is recognizing and exploring the external and internal situations of two successful organizations, Apple and Coca Cola. Also, to examine the competitive advantages and strategies used by these organizations, as well as sustaining value in an increasingly competitive market through creative strategic business plans. Another area being explored is the measurement guidelines used to substantiate the strategic effectiveness for these organizations and the effectiveness of these measurement guidelines. Internal and External Environments The whole process can be seen as beneficial knowledge for managers wishing to increase the long-term efficiency and develop strategic plans for the business. An organization’s environment can be broken into two separate divisions. First, the internal environment which is generally compiled of the factors or elements directly involved within the company. This would basically...
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