personality

1. A detailed list of general questions: 1. Introduction and analysis of financial performance

o Indicate the company’s name and line of business, and define the industry in which it competes.

o Report the financial performance of the company within this business over the past three to five years.

o Report the average financial performance of firms in the industry. Identify whether the industry is above- or below-average in profitability.

o Identify whether the company has a competitive advantage based on the difference between its performance and the industry average, and its performance compared with major competitors.

o Provide a broad overview of the issues that the company is facing. 2. Analysis of external environment

o Describe the factors in the general environment especially important to the firm and the industry.

o Describe the total revenues and profitability of the industry over the past few years.

o Explain why industry profitability is less or greater than the national average using Porter’s five-forces model.

· Do buyers have significant bargaining power?

· Do suppliers have significant bargaining power?

· Is the threat of entry significant?

· Is the threat of substitution significant?

· Is rivalry intense?

3. Analysis of the company’s competitive position (internal factors)

o Describe the company’s financial performance relative to the industry

average and major competitors over the past few years. o Identify the company’s strategy.

· What are the company’s quantitative goals for market share and profitability?

· How do the company’s products/services differ from those of rivals? Does the company achieve a premium price?

· What are the critical resources and capabilities that distinguish the company from its competitors? Are these resources and capabilities easy to imitate and substitute for?

· Does the company have unusual problems that put it at a competitive disadvantage?

4. Analysis of forthcoming change in the company’s industry

o What major trends are likely to affect the profitability of the industry?

Which are likely to improve profitability and which are likely to damage

profitability of the industry as a whole? o What is the timing of the trends? Will the industry likely go through a

major punctuated change over the next five years? o Are the trends likely to have particularly strong impact on the company?

5. Analysis of threats to the sustainability of the company’s competitive advantage

o Are there trends that are likely to have particular impact on the company’s competitive advantage or disadvantage?

o Are there major threats to the sustainability of the company’s position? 6. Recommendations

o Are the company’s industry structure and competitive position satisfactory?

o What options does the company face for improving its financial returns over the next five years?

o What strategic actions do you recommend given your analysis of the options available to the company?