BUS 499 Assignment 2-External and Internal Environments

Due Week 4 and worth 350 points

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 eight to ten (8-10) 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 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.

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