conduct a strategic analysis of an international company
Order Description
You should aim to evaluate the viability of the firm’s current strategy. You should examine the corporate strategy of your chosen organisation and conduct and internal and external analysis. You should then evaluate your organisation’s strategy and make any recommendations for changes to the strategy that you consider appropriate. You should also consider any ethical and/or sustainability issues the company may face and propose justifiable recommendations to these ethical and/or sustainability issues.

This analytical report should be no more than 3,000 words in length, should demonstrate your ability to identify and employ relevant academic concepts, theories and models, and should be fully referenced using the Harvard referencing system.
My chosen organisation is Mark and Spencer.

The recommended textbook:
De Wit, B. & Meyer, R. (2014) Strategy: An International Perspective. 5th ed., Andover: Cengage Learning EMEA.
Journals:
• Harvard Business Review
• Academy of Management Journal
• Academy of Management Review
• Long Range Planning
• Strategic Management Journal
• Strategic Organisation
• Strategic Entrepreneurship
Company-specific information:
It is very difficult to generalise where company-specific information might be found, because there are so many variables, and the information is different from one company to the next. The following suggestions are offered as a starting point, but you will need to undertake your own researches in order to obtain a good grade for your assignment.
• Company reports and company website
• Financial Times and other good quality newspapers
• BBC, FOX, ABC, and other relevant news organisations
• Google Scholar
• FAME
• Mintel
You are strongly advised not to reference generic websites such as Wikipedia, Business Balls, or Proven Models. These sites lack academic rigour and will therefore impact on the grade you might obtain for your work.

This is how the report mu be structured

Executive Summary (150 words)

Introduction (250 words)

Corporate Strategy (300-400 words)

Business Strategy
– Internal Analysis (800 words)
– External Analysis (800 words)
– CSR/Sustainability Strategy (300 words)

Evaluation of Strategy (300 words)

Conclusion (300-400 words)

References

Which model should I use in the external assessment of business strategy?
Porter’s Five Forces (no alternatives possible).

Which model should I use in the internal assessment of business strategy?
One of VRIN, VRIO, Value chain (no alternatives possible).

Which model should I choose for the internal assessment – VRIN, VRIO, or Value chain?
Each of these models has its strengths and limitations. You should use whichever model fits with the data you have gathered.
For the evaluation section of the assignment, last year some students used a SWOT. Can I use a SWOT this year?
No. The assignment is slightly different from last year. This year, you need to apply the framework of Richard Rumelt.

For the CSR/Ethics section of the assignment, can I use Carrol’s model?
Yes, provided it is relevant to your argument. Remember that all models should be used/applied and not simply described.

conduct a strategic analysis of an international company
Order Description
You should aim to evaluate the viability of the firm’s current strategy. You should examine the corporate strategy of your chosen organisation and conduct and internal and external analysis. You should then evaluate your organisation’s strategy and make any recommendations for changes to the strategy that you consider appropriate. You should also consider any ethical and/or sustainability issues the company may face and propose justifiable recommendations to these ethical and/or sustainability issues.

This analytical report should be no more than 3,000 words in length, should demonstrate your ability to identify and employ relevant academic concepts, theories and models, and should be fully referenced using the Harvard referencing system.
My chosen organisation is Mark and Spencer.

The recommended textbook:
De Wit, B. & Meyer, R. (2014) Strategy: An International Perspective. 5th ed., Andover: Cengage Learning EMEA.
Journals:
• Harvard Business Review
• Academy of Management Journal
• Academy of Management Review
• Long Range Planning
• Strategic Management Journal
• Strategic Organisation
• Strategic Entrepreneurship
Company-specific information:
It is very difficult to generalise where company-specific information might be found, because there are so many variables, and the information is different from one company to the next. The following suggestions are offered as a starting point, but you will need to undertake your own researches in order to obtain a good grade for your assignment.
• Company reports and company website
• Financial Times and other good quality newspapers
• BBC, FOX, ABC, and other relevant news organisations
• Google Scholar
• FAME
• Mintel
You are strongly advised not to reference generic websites such as Wikipedia, Business Balls, or Proven Models. These sites lack academic rigour and will therefore impact on the grade you might obtain for your work.

This is how the report mu be structured

Executive Summary (150 words)

Introduction (250 words)

Corporate Strategy (300-400 words)

Business Strategy
– Internal Analysis (800 words)
– External Analysis (800 words)
– CSR/Sustainability Strategy (300 words)

Evaluation of Strategy (300 words)

Conclusion (300-400 words)

References

Which model should I use in the external assessment of business strategy?
Porter’s Five Forces (no alternatives possible).

Which model should I use in the internal assessment of business strategy?
One of VRIN, VRIO, Value chain (no alternatives possible).

Which model should I choose for the internal assessment – VRIN, VRIO, or Value chain?
Each of these models has its strengths and limitations. You should use whichever model fits with the data you have gathered.
For the evaluation section of the assignment, last year some students used a SWOT. Can I use a SWOT this year?
No. The assignment is slightly different from last year. This year, you need to apply the framework of Richard Rumelt.

For the CSR/Ethics section of the assignment, can I use Carrol’s model?
Yes, provided it is relevant to your argument. Remember that all models should be used/applied and not simply described.