Assignment 2: External and Internal Environments

Choose
an industry you have not yet written about in this course, and one
publicly traded corporation within that industry. Research the company
on its own Website, the public filings on the Securities and Exchange
Commission EDGAR database (http://www.sec.gov/edgar.shtml),
in the University’s online databases, and any other sources you can
find. The annual report will often provide insights that can help
address some of these questions.

Write an 3-4 page paper in which you:

1. Choose
   the two (2) segments of the general environment that would rank highest
   in their influence on the corporation you chose. Assess how these
   segments affect the corporation you chose and the industry in which it
   operates.
2. Considering the five (5) forces of competition,
   choose the two (2) that you estimate are the most significant for the
   corporation you chose. Evaluate how well the company has addressed these
   two (2) forces in the recent past.
3. With the same two (2)
   forces in mind, predict what the company might do to improve its ability
   to address these forces in the near future.
4. Assess the
   external threats affecting this corporation and the opportunities
   available to the corporation. Give your opinions on how the corporation
   should deal with the most serious threat and the greatest opportunity.
   Justify your answer.
5. Give your opinion on the corporation’s
   greatest strengths and most significant weaknesses.  Choose the strategy
   or tactic the corporation should select to take maximum advantage of
   its strengths, and the strategy or tactic the corporation should select
   to fix its most significant weakness. Justify your choices.
6. Determine the company’s resources, capabilities, and core competencies.
7. Analyze
   the company’s value chain to determine where they can create value
   using the resources, capabilities, and core competencies discussed
   above.
8. Use at least three (3) quality references. Note: Wikipedia and other Websites do not quality as academic resources.

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:

• Be
  typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with
  one-inch margins on all sides; references must follow APA or
  school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional
  instructions.
• Include a cover page containing the title of the
  assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title,
  and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in
  the required page length.