1. When Analyzing A Case… Identify Opportunities & Threats
Look at all aspects of the marketplace that are possibly beyond the control of the firm or even the industry BUT have a huge impact on the development, implementation and execution of a strategy
How does the industry fair in relation to:
the economies of the countries/regions/cities in which they operate?
Government debt
Growth in the economy
Rates of inflation
Unemployment rates
Interest rates
Fiscal policy
Monetary policy
Etc.
demographics?
Population size
Income distribution
Ethnic mix
Geographic distribution
Age structure
Immigration
Etc.

2. When Analyzing A Case… (Cont’d.)
social and cultural trends?
Percentage of women in the workforce
Workforce diversity
Attitudes about quality of work/life relationships
Concerns about the environment
Shifts in work/career preferences
Shifts in preferences regarding product/service characteristics
Etc.
globalization?
Important political events
Critical global moments
Newly industrialized countries
Different cultural and institutional attributes
Etc.
technological trends?
Impact of the internet and social networks
Product innovation
Process innovations
Knowledge applications
New communication technologies
Etc.

3. When Analyzing A Case… (Cont’d.)
the extent of government intervention?
Regulation of the industry
Anti-trust legislation
Language legislation
Safety issues
Etc.
the major legal battles/issues facing the environment?
business trends?
Diversification
Mergers
Acquisitions
Joint ventures
Etc.
Some of these aspects of the environment may be threats to one industry and, at the same time, an opportunity to another industry

4. When Analyzing A Case… (Cont’d.)
Then you want to look at the industry at a more micro level
What are the keys to being a success in this industry?
Where is the industry in its business cycle?
How attractive is the industry?
How easy is it to become a player in this industry?
How many and how good are substitutes to this industry?
How strong and how much control do suppliers have over the industry?
How strong and how much control do buyers have over the industry?
How much rivalry exists among key players?
Fully understanding the key players we will be competing against
Who are they?
How strong are they?
What strategies are they using?
Attempt to build profiles of the key competitors
Try to predict what they will do next
We have attempted to determine how attractive the industry is – can we make any money???
And what do we have to do to succeed in this industry?

5. When Analyzing A Case… (Cont’d.)
So far,
we understand the playing field,
we have determined if the industry is one we want to participate in and
we have figured out what we need to do to be a success.
The next step is to figure out if we have what it takes to do what needs to be done.
Do a thorough review of Operations management
Supplier relations
Production process
Cost control
Distribution network
Risk reduction techniques
All the normal financial ratios (over time & compared to industry norms)
Capital requirements
Cash flows
What are the company’s chances of survival? (Z Score)
What is the company worth?

6. When Analyzing A Case… (Cont’d.)
Look at Customer management
Has the company figured out who they want as customers?
Have they segmented the market properly?
Have they figured out who they don’t want to attract?
Does their marketing and sales operations accomplish what it should?
Any loyalty programs?
How are they building lasting relationships?
Are they cross-selling?
How are they attempting to get customers to buy more?
Review Innovation
Do they know what the next generation of products is like?
Do they have great R&D partners?
Review design and testing methods
Analyze cost and time controls of innovation
Are they successful at bringing new products on stream?
Review their coordination efforts between innovation and operations
Review Social and legal policies
Environmental issues and solutions
Health and safety
Employment diversity
Being a good social citizen
Playing ethically

7. When Analyzing A Case… (Cont’d.)
Analyze Overhead
Hiring and training the right employees
Effective IT systems
Review how effective top management is
Is the culture suitable?
Does management work as a team and share ideas and help each other?
Are all parts of the company working toward the same goal?
Does the company have a true Competitive advantage?
Does a firms resources and capabilities add VALUE by enabling it to exploit
opportunities and/or neutralize threats?
Even if the capabilities are valuable they must be RARE to give a firm a
competitive advantage over rivals. How many rivals possess the same
capabilities?
Can these capabilities be IMITATED? Can rivals eventually catch up to us
at a reasonable cost? If capabilities can be imitated, the competitive
advantage may be short-lived
Is the firm ORGANIZED to take full advantage of its capabilities and resources?
We have advanced the analysis to the point of knowing what the firm is capable of doing

8. When Doing A Case… (Cont’d.)
Identify the Issues or Problems Uncovered by the Analysis
Look at everything in your analysis that does not seem to make sense
You should separate major concerns from irritants
You must highlight those issues that you feel must be addressed immediately
and those that can wait
This has to flow from the analysis
Explain your rationale
Come up with some possible solutions
It is rare that there is only one solution that solves all the problems fully with
no downside
Therefore come up with a few possible solutions to address the major
issues you have identified
Discuss the pros and cons of each solution thoroughly
From your alternative solutions, recommend one
Develop the criteria you will use to review your options and select one
Make a recommendation and explain your rationale
Discuss how your recommendation adds value to shareholders and customers
Show how your recommendation solves the issues and problems
Explain why you think the firm has the capabilities to make your
recommendation a success
Be certain that your recommendation has few down-side implications

9. When Doing A Case… (Cont’d.)
Propose an Implementation Plan of Action
Consider what has to change in operations management
Does customer management need to be altered?
Does the firm need to come up with innovative products/processes etc.?
Don’t forget about regulatory and social implications of your
recommendation
Then think through what human, IT and structural changes must be made
Discuss how you will deal with resistance within the firm
Think through how competitors will react to your new strategy and how the
firm should deal with competitors’ counter-moves
Develop a timeline for various major steps in your implementation plan
Make Certain that Everything Fits Together
That the issues or problems flow from the analysis
That the alternatives address the issues or problems to some extent
That the recommendation flows from the alternatives
And that the firm is capable of implementing your recommendation