QUESTION
-
-
External and Internal Environments
NOTE: TEMPLATE and PREVIOUS ASSIGNMENT ARE ATTATCHED.
Mandatory Source: Hitt, M. A., Ireland, R. D., & Hoskisson, R. E. (2020). Strategic management: Concepts and cases: Competiveness and globalization (13th ed.). Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.External and Internal Environments
Overview
In this assignment, you are to use the same corporation you selected and focused on for Assignment 1.Using the corporation you chose from Assignment 1: Strategic Management and Strategic Competitiveness, examine the industry in which the entity operates. Use any or all of the following resources to conduct research on the company:
Company website.
Public filings from the Securities and Exchange Commission EDGAR database.
Strayer University's online databases.
The Nexis Uni database,
Other miscellaneous sources. Note: the company's annual report will often provide insights that other resources may not include.
Requirements
Write a four- to six-page paper in which you do the following:Choose the two 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.
Considering the five forces of competition, choose two forces of competition that you estimate are the most significant for the corporation you chose. Evaluate how well the company has addressed these forces in the recent past.
With the same two forces in mind, predict what the company might do to improve its ability to address these forces in the near future.
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.
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.
Determine the company’s resources, capabilities, and core competencies.
Go to Basic Search: Strayer University Online Library to locate quality references. Note: Wikipedia and similar websites do not qualify as academic resources.
Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:This course requires use of new Strayer Writing Standards (SWS). The format is different than other Strayer University courses. Please take a moment to review the SWS documentation for details.
Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; references must follow SWS 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.
Use the Assignment 2 Template [DOC] to ensure that your assignment meets the above requirements.The specific course learning outcome associated with this assignment is as follows:
Analyze the effects of the general environment, competition, threats, opportunities, strengths, and weaknesses relative to a corporation.
Grading for this assignment will be based on answer quality, logic and organization of the paper, and language and writing skills, using the scoring rubric.
-
| Subject | Business | Pages | 9 | Style | APA |
|---|
Answer
External and Internal Analysis of Dell
Week 6 Assignment 2
Aspects of profit optimization and organizational relevance in the industry rely on management ability to identify aspects of growth and potential limiting factors. The technology industry experiences one of the robust growth and expansion of individual corporations relative to the demands of the market. It depends on how well management strategies are implemented to overcome challenges and opportunity optimization. This paper recognizes the contribution of understanding and organizational external and internal environments towards growth. It explores the external and internal environments of one of the largest technology corporations in the United States, Dell Inc.
General Environment
The economic segment
The economic performance of the market presents significant implications for the operations of corporations in the technology industry. Observing the trends of financial performance in the United States and the globe in recent years provide a perfect demonstration of how fluctuations impact the performance of corporations in the technology industry (Hitt & Hoskisson. 2020). Strong economic performance provides incentives for better sales and penetration of new products into the market. Dell's Inc.'s progress in the market relies on how aspects of virtualization, cloud computing, and heightened data storage can be integrated to generate revenue. That depends upon the performance of the global economy. Recent observations indicate a 39% growth in server revenue, 18% in mobility revenue, and 60% increase in revenue from foreign investment, which narrows down to the global economic resilience.
Technological segment
Current industry developments continue to affirm the importance of technological innovation in sustaining competitive advantage. The dynamics of the technology world imply that unless corporate entities invest in research and development of new products, services, and business approaches, they risk becoming irrelevant (Hitt & Hoskisson. 2020). Companies must focus on improving current outcomes and generating new technologies to meet the changing market demands and considering Dell's position. Inc., this segment is extremely vital as it defines the facets that keep its business afloat. Adapting to new technological advancement and setting competitor standards are crucial elements of success for Dell Inc. in the changing perspectives of the technology industry. Dell Inc. currently portrays characteristics affirmative on innovation and technological optimization, including shifting to virtualization and cloud computing (Larsen, 2017). The aspect of competitiveness based on the external influence of technology is linked to how well Dell Inc. adapts and identifies new technologies and use them to promote high returns. The introduction of the Vostro 3000 series presents an example of how Dell. Inc. adapts to the demands and influence of technology.
Five Forces of Competition
Assessing a firm`s five forces of competition helps in understanding the factors that affect profitability and informs decisions. Understanding the five forces is crucial in strategic development towards achieving competitive edge in the industry and analyzing Dell`s Inc., the forces that are extremely important are Bargaining power of suppliers and buyer bargaining power.
Bargaining power of suppliers
The operations of Dell Inc. extensively rely on suppliers as the firm only engages in assembling products from components delivered from different external vendors. The supplier power in the company's production chain is one of the significant deterrence of growth. Factors such as high switching costs imply that Dell Inc. will incur higher expenses in changing suppliers. Aspects of quality are also visible in supplier power, although the firm leverages the volume of orders. Supplier power is an inherent challenge at Dell Inc. but the firm continues to establish frameworks that provide leverage against supplier power including increasing the scope of substitute components, introduction of forward integration and incorporation of large numbers of suppliers within its supply chain.
Buyer bargaining power
Higher buyer bargaining power in the technology industry and Dell Inc., for that matter, is a critical factor that impacts overall productivity and performance. The limitations of product differentiation and zero switching costs for Dell Inc. customers deters the firm's competitiveness in the market. Increasing competition in the industry raises product price sensitivity. However, Dell Inc. leverages on lack of backward integration. Dell`s Inc. approach in reducing buyer power include tailoring laptops and services to unique customer needs to prevent coordination of customers, provision of price breaks and extra services to upcoming customers are also common aspects employed at Dell Inc. to reduce buyer power.
Future Improvements
Supplier and buyer power provides significant limitations to business sustainability at Dell Inc., making it essential that the firm develops strategies for mitigation. Future improvements targeting reducing supplier power should entail the incorporation of backward integration in the supply chain. Backward integration will allow Dell Inc. to acquire suppliers as a mitigation measure against volatilities in the supply chain (Del Prete & Rungi, 2020). The creation of substitutes, increase the firm's profile, and using multiple suppliers should also be implemented. On the scope of reducing buyer power, measures should focus on implementing loyalty programs and product and service differentiation.
Greatest External Threat
The evolution of the technology industry presents significant threats to corporates. The boom in the smartphone and tablet industry is one of the greatest external threats facing Dell Inc. The recent growth of portable tech products in the market implies that Dell. Inc. continues to lose significant revenues as user preference shift away from laptops. Dell's Inc.'s lack of investment in the smartphone and tablet market is an essential factor of consideration in evaluating business sustainability.
Greatest Opportunity
Research and development is a fundamental component that contributes to innovation in the technology industry. Observing the performance of Dell Inc., branching away from hardware sales, is an excellent opportunity for business sustainability. Current developments indicate the shift of Dell Inc. into software-related products and services to customers, including security, infrastructure, and cloud. It is a form of diversification that creates leverage in the competitive technology industry.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Over the years, Dell Inc. operations have leveraged on strengths, including a broad portfolio, unique customization options, and a direct sales model. Having a well-established brand name in the world and selling an extensive portfolio of computer products contributes to the success of Dell Inc. In the early 2000s, Dell introduced customized computers to families while selling directly to enterprises and consumers. However, Dell Inc. is limited to weaknesses such as an extreme focus on commodity products and low spending in R & D.
Strategy or Tactic
Although the strengths of Dell Inc. contributes to its success, implementation of strategies, including increasing product diversification and shift to software-related products and services can optimize competitiveness in the market. Implementation of mergers and acquisitions and changes to the smartphone and tablet industry can prove effective in increasing the strength of Dell Inc. in the market. The weaknesses at Dell Inc. can be addressed with increased investment in R&D and software-related services. Currently, the company provides services in infrastructure and security, and increasing investment is crucial leverage.
Resources, Capabilities, and Core Competencies
The success of Dell Inc. in the technology industry is pegged on the ability to utilize resources, capabilities, and core competencies to attain a competitive advantage. The resources of Dell. Inc. includes technology infrastructure, which offers immense support to how the organization implements operations to meet customer demands. Dell has a powerful and organized stock management that eliminates intermediaries, a crucial resource for higher profits, and customer satisfaction. The capabilities of a direct business model, value web models, and excellent customer services improve Dell. Inc. brand penetration in the market. The core competencies in the firm include supply string management and customer focus (Larsen, 2017). Strong knowledge of customer needs promotes the firm's ability to customize its products and services to address customer preferences.
- Del Prete, D., & Rungi, A. (2020). Backward and forward integration along global value chains. Review of Industrial Organization, 1-21.
- Hitt, Ireland, & Hoskisson. 2020. Strategic management: Concepts and cases: Competitiveness and globalization (13th ed.). Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.
- Larsen, A. I. (2017). DELL Technologies(Bachelor's thesis, BI Norwegian Business School).