Posted: September 16th, 2017

Strategy Management and Governance

Strategy Management and Governance

Order Description

This is a strategic audit in report form assignment.

Develop a program for completing this assignment as we have just one opportunity to do it and there are no extensions.

Content
In this assignment you are required to conduct a Strategic Audit of an organisation called Pumpkin Patch (Children’s clothes retailer). The format for this audit will

be a report. Follow the guidelines set out below as you assemble this information. Ensure you are familiar with the tools used in strategic analysis and understand

them fully before attempting this assignment.
Guidelines
•    Executive Summary: Your report starts with the usual cover sheet and an Executive Summary the Exec Summary is the last thing to be written in the report and

summarises all the information contained in it. It also includes any assumptions and limitations encountered during the analysis.
•    Table of Contents: this is self-explanatory; don’t forget to put page numbers for the various headings.
•    Introduction: The introduction outlines and describes the Pumpkin Patch does. It provides context and should cover the first element of your audit, namely, the

Industry Analysis.
?    Questions must covered in the introduction:
1.    What industry sector is it? (Describe and define it carefully).
2.    How large is this industry?
3.    Is it consolidated or fragmented?
4.    What are the key drivers in the industry? (For example: retailers are concerned with social changes and customer behaviour which have driven a move to out of

town shopping, Personal disposable income also drivers demand for retailers)
5.    Where is the organization placed on the industry lifecycle curve?
6.    How dynamic is the industry?
7.    What position does the organization occupy in the industry’s market?
8.    Who are the big players that dominate this industry?
9.    What are the key issues arising at this time with respect to your organization and the industry?
Do not confine yourself to the above questions; describe your industry as thoroughly as you can with points that are relevant from a strategic perspective.

1-    Macro-environmental analysis: We use a tool for this which is called a PESTEL analysis. The acronym stands for: Political, Economic; Social/Demographic;

Technological; Environmental and Legal; all elements that have a direct or indirect influence on the performance of the organization you are analysing.
DON’T DESCRIBE THESE FACTORS, ANALYSE THE RELATED ONCE
Political: government regulations, government policy, taxation, import/export regulations and etc.
Economical: Market growth, interest rate, foreign trade provisions, balance of trade and etc.
Social: lifestyle changes, consumerism, market demands, fashion and etc.
Technological: nanotechnology, new materials, new processes, new innovations and etc.
Ecological: environmental attitudes, climate change, trends in land use and etc.
Legal: changes to statutory legislation, new restrictions, lifting or repealing of legislation and etc.
1.    Apply selectively: identify specific factors which impact on the industry, market and organisation in question.
2.    Identify factors which are important currently but also consider which will become more important in the next few years. THINK about the implications of the

identified factors on the next 3-5 years
3.    Use data from authoritative sources to support the points and analyse trends using up – to – date information. Remember to reference.
4.    Identify OPPORTUNITIES AND THREATS – the main point of the exercise.
5.    Key issues in each of the dimensions need to be highlighted and discussed in the report, particularly if they have a strong direct influence on the business at

present or at some near future stage. You are going to need to look at your organization from a holistic perspective and understand how it operates in the context of

the wider environment in order to do this analysis.
?    Some questions that must be answered in the macro environmental analysis:
1.    Determine what is happening in your chosen organization;
2.    What insights can you develop from your organization and what it is doing?
3.    What do you think these insights will lead to?
4.    Do you have a visualization of the future of your organization?
5.    What industry does your chosen organization fall into?
6.    Where is the organization placed in terms of its macro-environment?
7.    How competitive is your chosen organization in its industry?
8.    What are the key drivers for companies in this industry?
9.    What unique features are there about this industry that you would not find in other industries?

2-    Competitive analysis: There is a tool for this analysis as well, Porter’s Five Forces. Refer to your readings and texts on this analysis and what output you

are attempting to convey. Some elements of your industry analysis and macro-environmental analysis will be relevant here but it focuses mainly on your competitors and

their position in the market relative to your own. Again, a full analysis can be attached in the appendices but I would expect a discussion of key issues that directly

influence the organization to be put into the report itself.
3-    SWOT analysis: Many students, and large organizations for that matter, make the mistake of thinking a SWOT analysis of their organization is all that is

necessary to formulate a strategy. This is not only naive, but also a fundamentally flawed approach to strategy formulation. The SWOT analysis is a summary instrument

that highlights the opportunities and threats emanating from the previous three pieces of analysis. The analytical component of a SWOT is embedded in the internal

analysis of the organization where you are trying to solicit what the strengths and weaknesses of your organization are. You need to find and isolate the distinctive

competencies of your organization and list its major weaknesses. A VRIO/VRINE analysis is also useful for this purpose. Note too that a strength can also be a weakness

– for example, if you are married to the Chairman’s son/daughter and you’re ‘good’ with the ‘old man’ that could be a strength, however, if your relationship is taking

strain (because you disagree with his/her strategic direction) you might want to reflect on how ‘good’ you are with the ‘old man’! The final SWOT analysis is used as a

strategic decision making information source that highlights the most important issues to be addressed by the strategy.
?    Some questions for SWOT analysis must be answered:
1.    Identify your chosen organization’s strategic capabilities;
2.    Explain what category of strategic capability do these fall into;
3.    Conduct a VRIO analysis of your chosen organization and substantiate your findings;
4.    Summarise your findings, including the internal analysis (VRIO/ VRINE analysis) of core (distinctive) competencies into a SWOT analysis.
•    Conclusion – This is a short summary of your findings highlighting the key opportunities and threats and giving some guidance regarding how the strengths of

the organization can be used to capitalise/minimise them. You also need to point out the weaknesses and give a broad outline as to how they can be dealt with. Do not

make specific recommendations or your opinions or any reference to solutions! These will be dealt with elsewhere.

•    Reference:
o    DON’T USE WEBSITES AS REFERENCES. Use books and journal articles and data from authoritative sources to support the points and analyse trends using up – to –

date information. Remember to reference these data.
o    References to industry authority, texts, journals and industry publications are welcome if they are used to back up the assertions you make in your report.
o    Please use these books as references:
?    Johnson, G., Whittington, R., Scholes, K., Angwin, D. and Regner, P., (2014). Exploring Strategy: Texts and Cases. (10th Ed.). Edinburgh Gate, Harlow, UK:

Pearson Education Limited.

?    Hamel, G. & Prahalad, C.K., (1996). Competing for the future. Boston, MA.: Harvard Business School Press.

?    Kim, W.C., & Mauborgne, R., (2005) Blue Ocean Strategy.  Boston, MA.: Harvard Business School Press.

Tips for completing the audit:
1.    If you state that something is the case about the industry or organization you need to back it up with relevant authority – remember to reference it!
2.    Develop a programme for completing this assignment – you only get one opportunity as there are no extensions.
3.    Do not speculate! If you are unsure whether something is or isn’t the case then go find out and provide confirmation of your information, otherwise exclude it

from your analysis.
4.    Don’t compare products and services or use internal or operational information and details, compare the industry itself with other industries that have same

activities.

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