Strategy Selection, Implementation and Evaluation

Purpose: 

This project is the last of four projects. You will generate a pool of alternative strategies, evaluate these alternative strategies, and select the best strategy using the tools and concepts learned throughout the course. You will develop implementation plans, evaluative plans to control the implementation process, and plan for post-evaluation measures. You will also draw from previous business courses to understand how organizations develop and manage strategies to establish, safeguard, and sustain their position in a competitive market.  

Skill Building: 

In this project, you build many different skills, including research, critical thinking, writing, and developing analytical skills related to various financial analysis tools and strategy tools used in business. In addition, you will select optimal strategies, design how to implement them, and evaluate the implementation process of the optimal strategies.

Outcomes Met With This Project:

• Examine the impact of ethical decision      making, social responsibility, stakeholder analysis, and corporate      governance on organizations and society;
• Utilize a set of useful analytical      skills, tools, and techniques for analyzing a company strategically;
• Integrate ideas, concepts, and theories      from previously taken functional courses including, accounting, finance,      market, business, and human resource management;
• Analyze and synthesize strengths,      weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) to generate, prioritize, and      implement alternative strategies to revise a current plan or write a new      plan and present a strategic plan;
• Evaluate the outcomes of identified      strategies to determine their success and impact on short-term and      long-term objectives.

   

Instructions: 

Step 1  Course Material and Research

You must research information about the focal company and the environment for this project. You are accountable for using the course materials to support the ideas, reasoning, and conclusions made. Course material’s use goes beyond defining terms and explains the ‘why and how’ of a situation. Using one or two in-text citations from the course materials and then relying on Internet source material will not earn many points on the assignment. A variety of source material is expected, and what is presented must be relevant and applicable to the topic being discussed. Avoid merely making statements but close the loop of the discussion by explaining how something happens or why something happens, which focuses on importance and impact. In closing the loop, you will demonstrate the ability to think clearly and rationally, showing an understanding of the logical connections between the ideas presented from the research, the course material, and the question(s) being asked.

Note: Your report is based on the research results performed and not on any prepared documentation. What this means is that you will research and draw your own conclusions that are supported by the research and the course material rather than the use of any source material that puts together any of the tools or techniques whether from the Internet, for-pay websites, or any pre-prepared document, video or source material. A zero will be earned for not doing your own analysis.

Success: The analysis is based on research and not opinion. You are not making recommendations, and you will not attempt to position the focal company in a better or worse light than other companies within the industry merely because you are completing an analysis on this particular company. The analysis must be based on factual information. Any conclusions drawn have to be based on factual information rather than leaps of faith. To ensure success, as stated above, you are expected to use the course materials and research on the focal company’s global industry and the focal company. The opinion does not earn credit, nor does it use external sources when course materials can be used. It is necessary to provide explanations (the why and how) rather than making statements. Avoid stringing one citation after another, as doing so does not show detailed explanations.

Step 2  Research 

In completing the report, you will use the chapters in the eBook as a guide and perform research on the same company as in Projects 1 and 2. Answer the required elements below in narrative form following the steps. 

Note: Your report is based on the research results performed and not on any prepared documentation. What this means is that you will research and draw your own conclusions that are supported by the research and the course material rather than the use of any source material that puts together any of the tools or techniques whether from the Internet, for-pay websites, or any document, video or source material. A zero will be earned for not doing your own analysis.

Library Resources

On the main navigation bar in the classroom, select Resources and then select Library. Select Databases by Title (A – Z). Select M from the alphabet list, and then select Mergent Online. Dun and Bradstreet’s Hoovers Database, among others, is another excellent source for competitors and industry information. You are not to depend on one resource to complete the analysis. Moreover, it is impossible to complete Porter’s Five Forces, a competitive analysis, or an OT by using only the course material.

You should not be using obscure articles, GlassDoor, or Chron, or similar articles.  

Research for Financial Analysis: Financial Research

Research for Industry Analysis CSI Market

The UMGC library is available for providing resources and services. Seek library support for excellence in your academic pursuit.  

Library Support

Extensive library resources and services are available online, 24 hours a day, seven days a week at to support you in your studies. In addition, the UMGC Library provides research assistance in creating search strategies, selecting relevant databases, and evaluating and citing resources in a variety of formats via its “Ask a Librarian” service at https://www.umgc.edu/library/libask/index.cfm.

Scholarly Research in OneSearch

To search for only scholarly resources, you are expected to place a checkmark in the space for “Scholarly journals only” before clicking search.  

Step 3 Specific Company for All Four Projects 

For this project, your instructor has specifically assigned each student to write an independent report on one focal company. The assigned company must be used for all four projects in this course. You cannot write reports on any other company different from the company specifically assigned by your instructor. Students who fail to use the specifically assigned companies from the list or use an unapproved company will receive a zero for the project. 

The company that your instructor has assigned to you will be used for this project.

Step 4  Preparation for the Project

Before you begin writing the report, you will read the following requirements that will help you meet the writing and APA requirements.  

• You will be analyzing the selected      company. When doing analysis, you are not merely making statements that      may be cited. Instead, you will be supporting the statements made.      “Support” is the process of explaining, discussing, and analyzing “why”      and “how,” which is a higher-level critical analytical skill that is      required for this class. Support is needed to do well on this project.
• Read the grading rubric for the      project. Then, use the grading rubric while writing the report to ensure      all requirements are met, leading to the highest possible grade.

Step 5   How to Set Up the Project 

• The document has to be written in Word or      RTF. No other format is acceptable. No pdf files will be graded. Use      12-point font for a double-spaced report. The final product is      expected 10-12 pages. The final project may not be more than 12 pages,      excluding the title page and reference page. Those items identified in the      implementation and action plans should appear under the appropriate      heading in the paper. Do not use an Appendix. 
• Create a title page with the title, your      name, date, the course number, the instructor’s name.
• Create Topic Headings      that correspond to exact sections of the project requirements.      Use the exact Headings and Heading Numbers listed below in Red Font!

Use the following template using the headings to separate elements. Do not use bullets in your paper as the required format is in narrative format with indented paragraphs and no extra space between paragraphs.

I. Introduction (Executive Summary)

(The Introduction paragraph is the first paragraph of the paper and will describe to the reader the intent of the paper, explaining the main points covered in the paper.  This intent should be understood before reading the remainder of the paper so the reader knows exactly what is being covered in the paper. Therefore, write the introduction last to ensure all of the main points are covered.)

II. Strategy Generation

• To generate a pool of strategies, you      will look at the organization’s business-level strategy, corporate-level      strategy, and global strategy.
• Then, using the information and data      collected from your research and the analytical outcomes from (a) external      factor analysis in your Project 1 and (b) internal factor analysis in      Project 2, you will generate a pool of strategies.
• Finally, use the Grand Strategy Matrix      from Project 2 to narrow down your strategies a minimum of three      strategies that fit in the appropriate quadrant of the Grand      Strategy Matrix for your company. Use course materials and company      research for support. (Note to maximize your grade in this area a minimum      of five strategies should be proposed.)

   

III. Cultural and Organizational Factors to Consider

Identify and discuss cultural and organizational factors that should be considered in analyzing and choosing among the alternative strategies. Use course materials and company research for support.

IV. Strategy Prioritization using QSPM

The QSPM produces a composite analysis that allows you to prioritize strategies. A composite analysis is one in which you will bring in a combination of relevant factors from the various analyses (EFE Matrix, IFE matrix, CPM matrix, SWOT, Grand Strategy Matrix, and QSPM). The QSPM is a tool that helps determine the relative attractiveness of feasible alternative strategies based on the external and internal key success factors. See Week Five Tools and Techniques and Dr. Kathy’s Notes for Week Five.

IV. A. – Explain Quantitative Strategic Planning Matrix or QSPM – Explain how the QSPM can be developed in order to prioritize strategies. Use course materials to support your explanation.

IV. B – Develop a QSPM – Prioritize strategies by completing the Quantitative Strategic Planning Matrix or QSPM. Use company and/or industry research for support.

V. Strategy Selection and Recommendation

Your strategy selection will be based on the use of the Quantitative Strategic Planning Matrix (QSPM) that you completed in Section IV.

V. A. Strategy Selection – Identify which one or two strategies is best using the Quantitative Strategic Planning Matrix (QSPM) analysis completed in section IV. Give examples from company research and use course materials for support.

V. B. Strategy Recommendation Details – Expand on the strategy selected in V.A discussing the overall strategy from a corporate, business and functional level and expanding on goals, objectives, and tactics of this recommendation. Use both course materials and company research for support.

VI. Strategy Implementation

VI. A. Strategy Implementation Procedures – Describe procedures for the recommended strategy’s implementation. Use both course materials and company research for support.

VI. B. – Who, What and How – Discuss who, what and how to implement the selected strategy or strategies at the corporate level, business-unit level, and functional level. Use both course materials and company research for support.

VII. Strategy Evaluation

VII. A. Evaluation Procedures – Discuss procedures for strategy review and evaluation for the recommended strategy. Use course materials and company research for support.

VII. B. Evaluative Measures – Discuss the appropriate evaluative measures (including who, what, when, and how at the corporate level, business-unit level, and functional level). Use course materials and company research for support.

VIII. Corrective Action Plan – Discuss a corrective action plan (including who, what, when, and how) at the corporate, business unit, and functional levels. Use course materials and company research for support.

IX. Conclusion

• Create a conclusion. The Conclusion is      intended to emphasize the purpose/significance of the analysis, emphasize      the significance/consequence of findings, and indicate the wider      applications derived from the main points of the project’s requirements.      Use course materials and company research for support.

   

References

Step 6  Review the Paper 

Read the paper to ensure all required elements are present.

The following are specific requirements that you will follow. Use the checklist to mark off that you have followed each specific requirement.  

Checklist

Specific   Project Requirements

Proofread your paper.

Read and use the grading   rubric while completing the paper to ensure all requirements are met to lead   to the highest possible grade. 

Third-person writing is   required. Third-person means that there are no words such as “I, me, my, we,   or us” (first-person writing), nor is there use of “you or your”   (second-person writing). If uncertain how to write in the third person, view   this link: http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/education/grammar/first-second-and-third-person. 

Contractions are not used in   business writing, so do not use them.  

Paraphrase and do not use   direct quotations. Paraphrase means you do not use more than four consecutive   words from a source document. Removing quotation marks and citing is   inappropriate.  Instead, put a passage from a source document into your   own words and attribute the passage to the source document. There should be   no passages with quotation marks.  Using more than four consecutive   words from a source document would require direct quotation marks. Changing   words from a passage does not exclude the passage from having quotation   marks. If more than four consecutive words are used from source documents,   this material will not be included in the grade.  

You are expected to use the   research and weekly course materials to develop the analysis and support the   reasoning. Therefore, there should be a robust use of the course material.   The material used from a source document must be cited and referenced.    A reference within a reference list cannot exist without an associated   in-text citation and vice versa. Changing words from a passage does not   exclude the passage from having quotation marks.   

Use in-text citations and   provide a reference list that contains the reference associated with each   in-text citation.

You may not use books in   completing this problem set unless it is part of the course material. Also,   do not use a dictionary, Wikipedia, Investopedia, Fern Fort University, or   any other for-free website.