ASSIGNMENT BRIEF
Individual report based on the strategic analysis of a given organisation. The assignment addresses module learning outcomes 1- 5.
Present the results of a detailed strategic analysis of your given company to determine the strategic fit between its operating environment, its capabilities and resources and the strategies it is pursuing.
REQUIREMENTS
The report should be written in PowerPoint
Length: 12 slides (+/- 1); not including cover page, tables of contents and references
Based on research using recommended sources of information and appropriate supplementary sources
For multi-business firms, you are allowed to focus on one specific business.
GUIDANCE
You are strongly advised to treat the components identified above as hints and cues about what to research rather than as a check-list for the assignment. Depending on your firm, some topics or factors might be more important than others. It is expected that your report will show an ability to focus on what is important appropriate for Level 6, i.e. final year.
For multi-business firms, choose one business as the focus of your report. Choose the business for which there is most information in the university’s databases.
1 Research
Start your research using the sources of information introduced in the research workshop (check week 5 seminar in My Learning).
Use appropriate supplementary sources to fill in missing details and to bring your research up-to-date.
o Appropriate supplementary sources were also identified in the research workshop
o All sources of information should be current (to the extent possible), reliable and valid.
2 External environments of the firm
You may use information from your group presentation
Make sure you update and improve it; contextualise it for your company, and select those parts which help with the analysis of your company
Avoid the temptation to make lists
Avoid taking a fill-in-the-blanks approach
Integrate the general and industry-level information to show analytical skills and the ability to interpret information.
3 Analysis of the firm
Use an appropriate technique to evaluate the firm’s key capabilities and competitive resources
o identify any resources or capabilities which might be the basis of competitive advantage
o list-making and assertions are not appropriate; this section should show an ability to apply a suitable technique of analysis
Recent firm performance should cover the past four to five years
