Signature Assignment: Strategic Plan: Implementation Plan, Strategic Controls, and Contingency Plan Analysis

Introduction

Microsoft Company is an incredibly diverse technology company which establishes software for personal computers, video games, web applications, and mobile devices. The company became the most prominent software company in the whole world in the year 2000. However, Microsoft's market has steadily been decreasing due to the stiff competition from other businesses within the same industry. This paper presents a SWOTs analysis that analyzes the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in the organization while looking at the internal and the external factors in the firm.

The external factors will be those factors affecting Microsoft that are beyond the company's control including the regulatory and legislative issues as well as competition (Cassidy, 2016). The internal factors will include the factors happening inside Microsoft Company and that the firm can control given the proper strategies including management, innovation, and structure. The primary objective of the SWOT analysis is to determine and assess the information that will be important in developing the strategic plan of the corporation.

External Forces and Trends

Microsoft Corporation should deal with the several external forces and trends that may impact on its strategic goals. The legislative and legal issues are among the important external factors that may affect the corporation (Cervone, 2014). The technology industry is determined by the establishment of intellectual property, and it is important to safeguard the new technologies that the company plans to introduce with copyrights, trademarks, and patents. Since the beginning of 2012, the company's primary concern was to protect the privacy of its customer's information. Failure to do so could lead to the lawsuits that could cause the company's fortune. Besides, Microsoft has increasingly been targeted by many underlying antitrust lawsuits connected to the products of windows operating system. This has, in turn, motivated the company to establish a strong legal team to deal with the underlying regulatory issues over the years. It will be pertinent for the company to uphold an extremely experienced legal team that will handle the changes that may affect the corporation in the future as a result of the compound lawsuits and regulatory issues.

A global economy that is unstable has a significant influence on the business operations of Microsoft Corporation. Microsoft's primary source of revenue comes from the operating system of windows that is most used by other personal users and businesses. The firm should maintain affordability and quality balance with its products and services throughout the economic swings in the country. The customers of the company may go for alternative businesses that offer lower prices for the same products if Microsoft fails to maintain quality and affordability balance during the economic downturn. Presently, the global economy is going towards the recovery and disposable incomes that are increasing globally. Suppose this trend continues, the company will have a chance to expand its operations in the emerging markets of South America, Asia, and Africa.

The most critical external factor for Microsoft Company is the competitive analysis brought about by the other technology companies within the industry. Technology companies including Google and Apple have taken a substantial market share in personal computing from Microsoft over the last years (Gray, 2015). Nevertheless, an increasing number of small technology businesses are penetrating the niche markets that were once overtaken by Microsoft. For instance, Mozilla has captured many internet markets initially controlled by Microsoft Explorer. As such, it is important to analyze the company's competitors for the enterprise to effectively introduce new products in the market without the fear of making sales as a result of competition. A weak competitive analysis can lead to flops in products like in the case of Windows Vista OS and the operating system of Windows mobile where the competitor's superior products outperformed the company's products with a great margin.

Internal Forces and Trends

Microsoft Corporation has utilized its success to create an inspiring culture in the organization. The company has effortlessly recruited highly-talented software designers and engineers to create world-class software applications. However, other technology companies have also demonstrated a greater capacity to develop the top talent in the technology industry. For instance, highly-experienced software engineers are likely to look for employment in Google than in Microsoft because of Google's reputation (Cassidy, 2014). Microsoft's leadership has also remained consistent over the years. For example, Bill Gates, an original team member of the company continues to be the CEO over the past years. The company may improve its leadership by recruiting a person who can reach out to the younger generation as a result of digitalization. Microsoft can build a positive image by developing its software to suit the needs of the younger generation. The hypothesis here is that a strong leader in the team would make a considerable increase in the effectiveness of the leadership in Microsoft.

The company has continuously demonstrated an excellent ability to adapt to change. The business model of Microsoft is built on innovation and therefore continuously produce new innovative products that suit the extremely advanced technology industry. Despite the decline in the market share, Microsoft has maintained an impressive customer base that consistently delivers value to their stakeholders. Microsoft shows a robust effort to get into the new markets such as video games and mobile software applications (Smith, 2013). The increasing efforts to meet the demands of its customers has also made it possible for the company to be successful in the increasingly evolving markets.

SWOT ANALYSIS TABLE

Supply Chain of the New Division of the Existing Business

Microsoft has adapted to the supply chain of its business operations. The supply chain comprises of all the company's aspect from the procurement of inventory, manufacturing of products and the customer service (Gray, 2015). The company conducts its inventory in the supply chain to ensure the success of the firm. Microsoft should train all its stakeholders including the managers and the employees to make a positive impact on its supply chain. It can achieve this by training the suppliers to deliver quality products and the employees to provide the best services in the corporation.

Conclusion

Microsoft Company establishes software for personal computers, video games, web applications, and mobile devices. A strategic plan is needed for the company to direct its plans for the realization of organizational goals and objectives. Both internal and external trends impact on the strategic plan of the company and therefore its success. Microsoft Corporation should deal with the several external and internal forces and trends that may impact on its strategic goals.

References

Cassidy, A. (2016). A practical guide to information systems strategic planning. CRC press.

Cervone, H. F. (2014). Improving strategic planning by adapting agile methods to the planning process. Journal of Library Administration, 54(2), 155-168.

Gray, J. E. (2015). Integrating the Principles of Total Quality Into the Strategic Planning Process for a Federal Services Acquisition Organization (Doctoral dissertation, California State University, Dominguez Hills).

Smith, R. D. (2013). Strategic planning for public relations. Routledge.