BUS402 Discussion Question – Environmental Scanning – Weekly Lecture Includeded

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Environmental Scanning

Prior to entering this discussion, review section 4 of the Environmental-Trend Analysis in the Abraham’s textbook.

As you have learned in this week’s readings, many businesses exist in dynamic markets that pose unique economic, political, and technological challenges. Select a medium- to large-sized, publicly traded corporation that currently exists in a challenging business environment. Refer to the seven common categories of trend analysis as laid out in your textbook: Economic, regulatory/legislative, political, demographic, sociocultural, attitude/lifestyle, and technological. Research the company online by accessing the Mergent Ashford University Library online database which offers company financials, descriptions, history, property, subsidiaries, officers and directors. Also, access the Business Insights: Global Ashford University Library online database which offers information on global companies and industries. It includes environment analysis, market share data, financial reports, case studies, business news, and company comparison charts. (View the Getting Started With Mergent and Business Insights: Global documents for suggested methods of searching Ashford University Library databases generally, as well as specific advice for searching these two databases). You can always conduct research using credible online sources of corporate financial information, just be sure that wherever you obtain financial information that you cite your source. Use this Scholarly, Peer Reviewed, and Other Credible Sources (Links to an external site.) document for guidance. Choose one of the seven categories to use as a basis of analysis for this discussion. Ensure that the time frame is now and that the challenges are continuing.

In your initial post of at least 200 words,

  • Provide a general description of the publicly traded company you chose.
  • Describe the challenges facing the company in the chosen category of analysis.
  • Assess its current performance in your chosen category of analysis.
  • Forecast its projected performance in your chosen category of analysis.
  • Evaluate impending opportunities or challenges that result from your environmental scan.

(NOTE: Incorporate the feedback you receive from your instructor and peers and save your work. It will be part of your Strategic Plan Final Project for this course).

Weekly Lecture:

Analyzing the Industry

An industry is a group of organizations producing products that are close substitutes for each other (Abraham, 2012, p. 22). As organizations compete for market share, their competitive strategies influence each other as each organization pursues strategic competitiveness and profitability. We need to consider the specific strategies that organizations put into place to gain an edge in industry. Let’s review a few of them.

The Five Forces Model of Competition

To determine the intensity or strength of competition, it is necessary to review Porter’s Five Forces Model of Competition which asserts that these forces ultimately determine the profitability of the industry:

  • Rivalry among existing competitors
  • Bargaining power of buyers
  • Bargaining power of suppliers
  • Threat of new entrants
  • Threat of substitutes (Abraham, 2012, p. 22).

For a real life example of how these five competitive forces affect the profitability of a new entrant to the market, you may find the following article about Tesla’s role in the market and surprising success useful: Tesla’s Success So Far Has Some Analysts Eating Crow (Links to an external site.).

Strategic Groups

There are organizations within industries that employ similar strategies for strategic competitiveness. These organizations are generally classified as strategic groups (Abraham, 2012, p. 129). Membership in a particular strategic group is determined by the organization’s strategy, which may include the:

  • Extent of technological leadership
  • Degree of product quality
  • Pricing policies
  • Choice of distribution channels
  • Degree and type of customer service

Strategic groups are useful in analyzing the competitive structure of an industry and assessing the organization’s competition.

For an interesting discussion on growing companies trying to gain a competitive edge, you may find the following article on customer service helpful: A Big Strategic Mistake Fast Growing Companies Make (Links to an external site.).

Analyzing the Competition

Competitor analysis enables the organization to focus its attention on those organizations with which it will directly compete as the analysis focuses on how competitors might be expected to respond to an organization’s strategic moves. The process involves developing answers to a series of questions about competitors such as:

  • Future objectives
  • Current strategy
  • Assumptions about the industry
  • Capabilities

Competitor analysis is critical because it helps an organization understand competitors’ intentions and the strategic implications resulting from them.

For students interested in marketing, you may find the following video interesting as it contains an in-depth discussion of online competitive analysis geared toward direct marketers: 10 Competitive Analysis Tools for Direct Marketers (Links to an external site.)

Analyzing The General Environment

Industry and competition are not the only concerns of managers, as we should also consider the general environment that impacts organizations. The general environment is composed of trends in the broader society that can indirectly influence an industry and the organizations within the industry (Abraham, 2012, p. 152). The trends of the general environment include:

  • The economic trend represents the general economic health of the country or region in which the organization operates. For example, in the last few years, the weakened U.S. economy has had a devastating effect on small businesses. Nevertheless, there is still tremendous vitality in the small business sector of the economy.
  • The regulatory/legislative trend includes federal, state, and local government regulations designed to influence company behavior. For example, government regulations influence organizations such as Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
  • The political trend includes the power, actions, and activities that people take to redress perceived inequities.
  • (Links to an external site.)The demographic trend is concerned with a population’s size, age structure, geographic distribution, ethnic mix, and income distribution. For example, changes in a nation’s life expectancy directly impact the development of products targeted to an older population.
  • The attitude/lifestyle trend is concerned with how consumers live and their patterns of living such as consumer choice and consumption.
  • The sociocultural trend is concerned with different societies’ social attitudes and cultural values. For example, managers should take into account an employee’s need to telecommute when trying to balance work and family life.
  • The technological dimension includes scientific and technological advancements in a specific industry as well as in society at large.
  • The challenge for managers is to assess all seven trends, focusing the primary effort on those elements in each trend that have the greatest potential impact on the organization.

For further information on general environments, please view Episode 146: The General Environment: What It Is and How to Evaluate It (Links to an external site.).

SWOT Analysis

When analyzing external and internal influences on an organization, the SWOT (strengths-weaknesses-opportunities-threats) is helpful as it summarizes the external and internal analysis in the same management tool (Abraham, 2012, p. 152).

  • Strengths are positive internal characteristics organizations can exploit to achieve strategic performance goals.
  • Weaknesses are internal characteristics that may inhibit or restrict the organization’s performance.
  • Opportunities are characteristics of the external environment that have the potential to help the organization achieve or exceed its strategic goals.
  • Threats are characteristics of the external environment that may prevent the organization from achieving its strategic goals.

The SWOT analysis can be seen as a summary of a more detailed and extensive analysis process throughout businesses’ external and internal environments. It is also used to achieve a quick first glance at environmental factors. For a helpful presentation on SWOT, consider the following video: How to Perform a SWOT Analysis (Links to an external site.).

Analyzing the Internal Organization

The Context of Internal Analysis

When managers analyze their internal environment, they should not focus only on the traditional sources of competitive advantage such as labor costs but should focus on resources and capabilities that make the organization unique. An organization’s resources are the source of its capabilities, some of which can lead to core competencies that enable an organization to perform value-creating activities better than its competitors or that its competitors cannot imitate.

Core Competencies

Core competencies emerge over time and are the resources and capabilities that are a source of competitive advantage for the organization over its competitors (Abraham, 2012, p. 158). Core competencies are the activities the organization performs better than competitors and through which the organization adds unique value to its goods or services.

Protector & Gamble is an excellent example of turning an acquisition into a competency. For a brief discussion of Protector & Gamble’s strategy, visit Preview: How P&G Turned Acquisition Into a Core Competency (Links to an external site.).

Value Chain Analysis

The value chain is a framework that the organization uses to understand its cost position and to identify the multiple means that might be used to facilitate the implementation of its business-level strategy (Abraham, 2012, p. 165). Managers should use value chain analysis to develop new ways to combine capabilities and resources to create value that are difficult for competitors to duplicate; thus, creating a competitive advantage.

The Forbes website provides valuable information on designing a value chain analysis: How to Design the Value Chain You Need (Links to an external site.).

References:

Abraham, S. C. (2012). Strategic management for organizations. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/

Alanis Business Academy. (2013, December 9). Episode 146: The general environment: What it is and how to evaluate it (Links to an external site.). Retrieved from

Ballowe, T. (n.d.). How to perform a SWOT analysis (Links to an external site.). Retrieved from https://onstrategyhq.com/resources/video-how-to-pe…

Harvard Business Review. (2013, February 7). Preview: How P&G turned acquisition into a core competency (Links to an external site.). Retrieved from

Hennerberg, G. (2013, July 25). 10 competitive analysis tools for direct marketers (Links to an external site.). Retrieved from

Hopkins, M. S. (2010, March 25). How to design the value chain you need (Links to an external site.). Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/2010/03/25/value-chain-supp…

Mourdoukoutas, P. (2014, April 11). A big strategic mistake fast growing companies make (Links to an external site.). Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/panosmourdoukoutas/20…

Welsh, J. (2013, August 9). Tesla’s success so far has some analysts eating crow (Links to an external site.). Retrieved from http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2013/08/09/teslas-s…


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Fundamentalism in the media, Writing Assignment Homework Help

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  1. Find an online example of an individual or group being labeled “fundamentalist” in a mainstream media source: in an NY Timesstory, or by a commentator on CNN, etc. Post a link to that source.
  2. Given the context in which it occurs, describe why the author/speaker of this source uses the word “fundamentalist” in their piece.
  3. Do 10 minutes of internet research on the individual/group labeled as “fundamentalist” in the source you found.  Briefly summarize who they are today, what their background is, and what their stated goals (if any) are.
  4. Which of Ruthven’s “family resemblances” of fundamentalism (traditionalist struggles with difference, doctrines of textual inerrancy, control of women as a visual boundary of group identity) does this group exhibit, if any? 
  5. You may also find an example in which someone or a group is opposing or fighting against fundamentalism (using strategies that you read about in Bennoune’s book). 
  6. In your opinion, is the source’s use of the word “fundamentalist” to describe this group/individual appropriate? Is the group or the individual’s fight against fundamentalism effective, why or why not? 

200-300 words. No plagiarism please!!! Well-structure and well written.

01.16 Writing Your Narrative Forces of Nature

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After you have completed a final read through of your
story and made any necessary changes, submit your first draft
for grading. The length of your completed draft should be
at least 500 words.

Remember, you are writing a narrative based on the play, Macbeth; you are not writing a summary of the play.

01.16 Sample Partial Narrative

For this assignment, consult the information you wrote in your pre-writing organizer to write a narrative. Below is a partial sample that includes the exposition and rising action of a narrative; however, you will write a complete, original narrative.

Remember—you are not writing a summary of the play, Macbeth. You are writing a narrative, based on the play

  • Do not use the sample paragraphs in your narrative; you will write an original narrative.
  • Your original narrative will include an exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.
  • Your original narrative will consist of, at least, 500 words.
  • The topics are listed in the lesson.

Sample Partial Narrative

Macbeth has finally done it. He is King!! I walk through the
crowded streets after Macbeth’s coronation. My friend in battle now sits
on the throne. Macbeth seems to have always been lucky. First he won a
beautiful wife, then he became a war hero, and now he is King. No one
expected his rise to power.

Soon after the coronation, I walk through the castle gates of Castle
Macbeth, and much celebration can be heard. Purple, red, and gold
banners hang from the ceiling with illustrious flair. The warm aroma of
roasted pig fills the lighted halls. All of the nobles from the land are
in attendance tonight to celebrate the new King. Macbeth enters the
hall and addresses the crowd, “You know your own degrees; sit down. At
first and last, the hearty welcome.” Cheers ring out in the great hall.
“All hail King Macbeth,” everyone shouts! Immediately I become aware of
the change in Macbeth’s appearance. Macbeth looks different now that he
does not wear a soldier’s uniform. Macbeth is clothed in a deep purple
robe of royalty. A shining gold crown sits upon his brow. But his face
is looking haggard. Since our last meeting, there is not a sign of my
past friend in his face. Macbeth appears to have the weight of the world
on his shoulders.

…

…

…

Finding Support (Types of Evidence) it is a quiz

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Read (or reread) the following essays in Chapter 7 of Elements of Argument, “Support,” and then answer the questions about each one.

  • Siddhartha Mukherjee, “I’m Sorry, Steve Jobs. We Could Have Saved You,” pp. 211-213
  • Jeremy Markel, “Marketing to ‘Tweens’ Objectifies Women,” pp. 222-224 (i provided them below)
    • 1- Identify at least two sources of information that Mukherjee
      uses in his essay entitled “I’m Sorry, Steve Jobs. We Could Have Saved
      You.”
    • 2-
      What does Mukherjee use as evidence in his essay besides
      sources (or expert opinions)? Give examples from the essay of at least
      two other kinds of evidence that he uses (facts, examples, statistics,
      or even images).
    • 3-
      What is the overall goal of Mukherjee’s essay? How does the evidence that Mukherjee uses help him (or not) to achieve this goal?
    • 4-
      To which needs does the essay by Jeremy Markel, “Marketing
      to ‘Tweens’ Objectifies Women,” appeal? Where would you place Markel’s
      essay on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs?
    • 5-
      Which are the primary values that Markel appeals to? What
      does he assume that his audience values? Give examples that demonstrate
      your answers.
    • 6-
      Who does Markel use as sources (or expert opinions) in his essay? How do they help him make his argument?

New Business for a New Environment, marketing homework help

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Watch the video case study “Geek Squad: A New Business for a New Environment.”

http://highered.mheducation.com/sites/0077861035/s…

Read the case study discussion on pp. 88-89 of the Marketing text. Keep this case study in mind as you complete this assignment.

Write a 1,050-word report using your company(at&t)

Answer the following questions for your chosen organization.

  • Explain what the specific key environmental forces are that created an opportunity for your company.
  • Identify if there have been changes in the purchasing patterns of your organization’s target market in recent years.
  • Conduct an environmental scan for your chosen company to identify key trends. For each of the five environmental forces (social, economic, technological, competitive, and regulatory), identify trends likely to influence your company’s marketing efforts and product offering in the future.
  • Explain what differentiation strategy your company should undertake to encourage their target market to choose them over other competitors.
  • Analyze what lessons you might learn from the Geek Squad case study.

Include at least three references, at least one of which must come from the University Library.

Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines. No Running Head. Less than 10%plagerism

Global Marketing

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Consider the advantages and challenges presented by today’s global marketing environment. Then answer the questions below:

  • Does Tesla have a global or international presence?
  • Answer the applicable question below:
    • If Tesla is global: What are some of the pros and cons for your company of doing business across countries and cultures?
    • If Tesla is not global: Do you think that your company should go global? Why or why not?
  • Why is it important for leaders – the CMO, CEO and Executive Team – to understand digital and global marketing dynamics? What is the role of leaders in helping their organizations to navigate the challenges of a global marketplace?

Knowledge and Justification

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Each question should be answered thoroughly and in detail. Each answer should typically be at least one or two full paragraphs (and longer is fine!)

Write responses to each of the following questions based on the reading. Answer the questions fully and in detail (supporting your answers with reasons).

1) Explain what it means to have a justified belief, in terms of “reasonable doubt”. What sorts of things can create “reasonable doubt”?

2) Explain and discuss the Forer Effect. What implications does this have for the plausibility of astrology?

3) Explain and discuss faith and intuition. What sorts of things might create doubt about beliefs based on faith or intuition? Illustrate with examples.

The next three questions are about arguments. For each of the arguments below, do the following:

A) Formalize the Argument (list it in premise & conclusion form)

B) Identify the kind of argument. If it is Deductive, identify the form (modus ponens, modus tollens, denying the antecedent, affirming the consequent, etc). If it it an inductive argument, identify the kind of inductive argument that it is (analogical induction, or hypothetical induction, etc). If it is neither a deductive argument nor an inductive argument, then just leave this blank.

C) Identify whether the argument commits an informal fallacy, and explain how the fallacy is committed (if there is no informal fallacy, then just write “no fallacy”)

4) It’s not a surprise that Stephen Hawking thinks that there is probably alien life elsewhere in the universe. After all, he is an atheist. And atheists are crazy heathens who have no respect for God or for the fact that life is unique to Earth. So therefore we should ignore his ridiculous ideas.

5): We know that brains are capable of producing conscious thoughts and feelings and emotions. Computers are like brains in that they are incredibly complex information processing devices, so it is likely that computers could produce conscious thoughts and feelings and emotions as well.

6) It’s obvious which news source is the most balanced and fair news source – it’s Fox News. You can tell that they’re fair and balanced because they always say that they’re fair and balanced all the time, and since they’re so fair and balanced they wouldn’t lie about something like that.

All of your information to answer the questions are in the videos and ereader.





The video clip in this lecture (from Penn & Teller’s series on Showtime) contains some adult language – so make sure to watch it without any children or anyone else in the room that you would not want hearing such language.

https://ereader.chegg.com/#/books/0077526317/pagei…

https://ereader.chegg.com/#/books/0077526317/pagei…

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How are all of these forms of media connected through popular culture?, 06 Course Project – Critical Analysis

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A critical analysis serves as a way for you to examine the different elements of popular culture discussed in this course. For your final written assignment, discuss the media forms you have written about for your previous course portfolio essays. This essay should reflect upon your experience studying each form, and make distinctions as to how each one of them uniquely reflects American popular culture.

Your essay should attempt to answer the following:

  • How are all of these forms of media connected through popular culture?
  • Is there one form of media that in your opinion is more powerful in affecting its audiences than the others?
  • Is there one medium that is more problematic for American culture than the others?

Your thesis should include the answer to one of the questions above, and be the focus of your essay. Evidence of library research is required.

This essay should be 2 pages, in APA style

Beck Manufacturing and Plant Capacity, management homework help

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Beck Manufacturing and Plant Capacity*** Original work with
answers*** Introduction and conclusion paragraphs consisting of 4 to 5
complete sentences. Label each part and Plagiarism report must be
attached*** Read in full before answering questions!!!!  The file is attached…..

Al
Beck, president of Beck manufacturing, wants to determine the capacity
of his facility, which produces steering gears for auto manufacturers.
He has asked you to sort through the data and determine the capacity of
the system and how that capacity may be increased. The operation is a
product layout that produces large numbers of nearly identical products.
The process includes milling, grinding, boring, drilling, and
assembling, in that order. Each finished product requires one operation
on each type of machine. For example, each finished part is processed on
one of the five milling machines, one of the seven grinding machines,
etc.

The facility runs two 8-hour shifts per day, with a third
shift for maintenance. The industrial engineering department has
provided you with the following data on present operations. In addition,
you have been told that assembly operations, while not unlimited, can
be easily changed to meet the need.

  • Calculate the capacity of each machine center and the capacity of the system.
  • Analyze where the focus of the company’s efforts
    should be if Beck wants to expand capacity. Determine how much
    extra capacity he can get without causing another operation to
    become the bottleneck.
  • Suggest ways Beck can expand capacity without purchasing new equipment.

Your paper should be in paragraph form (avoid the use of
bullet points) and supported with the concepts outlined in your text
and additional scholarly sources.

Submit your three- to four-page paper (not including the
title and reference pages). Your paper must be formatted according to
APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center and must cite at
least three scholarly sources in addition to the textbook.


Answer a response 300 words pretty simple

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Answer the prompt below in at least 300 words. Submit your answer on a Word Document, not in the text box. All online content will be run through plagiarism screening. If you turn this in late, you lose points. This is part of your participation grade.

PROMPT

In our previous lectures, we discussed how the excesses of business during the Gilded Age resulted in the reform efforts of the Progressive Era. When businesses took advantage of the American worker, the government enacted programs to improve working conditions and to regulate unfair business practices.

In our last lecture, the Roaring 1920s were referred to as “The Mini Gilded Age” because it was also a time of economic prosperity and unregulated business practices. I agree with that assessment and argue that the New Deal was the rebirth of a “Mini Progressive Era” during President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s response to the Great Depression. And once again, we see that there are two distinct definitions of the word “freedom” as it relates to government: Freedom from government versus the government’s responsibility to protect American’s freedom.

How does President Franklin Roosevelt feel that American understandings of freedom should change? And does his political opponent Herbert Hoover’s definition of freedom differ from Roosevelt?