Strategic Audit and Recommendations: Analyzing a Company for Future Success

by | May 20, 2024 | Management

 

For the Strategic Audit you will be analyzing a company of your choosing and using what you learn to make strategic
recommendations going forward. The link between the past (in particular: how the company has performed over time),
the present (in particular: the current strategy and trajectory), and the future (in particular: what type of strategy would
best enable the company to achieve or maintain competitive advantage in light of the internal

Selecting a company
You may choose any company you’d like (excluding the 9 exceptions listed below). Part of the audit is a performance
analysis, so keep in mind if you choose a privately-held company, it may be difficult to find the recommended three to
five metrics for assessing performance. Because of past instances of attempted plagiarism you may not use the following
companies:
Tech Retail Auto F&B Footwear Travel
Microsoft Target Tesla Red Bull Nike Delta Airlines
Apple Walmart Ford Coca-Cola
Samsung Amazon BMW
Nvidia Starbucks
Uber McDonalds

•The more you can frame your analyses relative to main competitors in the firm’s industry or industry average, the
better.
I. Audit
a. Strategy Analysis
i. What is the company’s current strategy & tactics?
1. Business-level
a. To what extent has the firm established a cost leadership advantage?
i. How (see sources of advantage in Ch. 4)?
b. To what extent has the firm established a differentiation advantage?
i. How (see sources of advantage in Ch. 5)?
c. For each of these questions, try to demonstrate that you understand
what each generic strategy means. Provide a concrete example for your
assertion of the level of cost leadership advantage and the level of
differentiation advantage.
2. Corporate-level
a. How diversified is the firm?
b. In which markets does the firm compete and how they compete?
i. General or focused scope
ii. Extent of product diversification
iii. Extent of geographic diversification
c. Are there any important strategic alliances or recent acquisitions?
b. Performance Analysis
i. How has your company done relative to its competitors?
1. Use at least three metrics. Try to select those that are most relevant
2. For each metric, benchmark performance against competitors or industry
average, and against the company’s past performance.
a. Use two or more measures of accounting performance (See Table 1.1)
i. Provide at least one of the following: ROA, gross profit margin,
EDITDA, revenue growth
ii. Do not use gross revenue/sales or share price
b. If possible, try to find one non-financial performance metric that’s
particularly relevant for the industry in which your company operates
(e.g. occupancy rate for hotel chains, new customer activations for
wireless network carriers, new product releases/patents for technology
companies, etc.). If there is not a non-financial metric that is important or
available, try to find a financial one that is particularly important for your
company’s industry (e.g. same-store sales growth for restaurant chains)
3. In which aspects of performance is the company excelling and lagging? How well
is the company performing overall and to what extent it has a competitive
advantage?
4. How has the current strategy affected performance (remember that some long
term strategies entail short-term sacrifices early in their implementation)?
c. External Analysis
i. What is the current industry structure/level of competition (perfect
competitionàmonopoly) and what are the consequences (See Table 2.7)
ii. At what stage is the industry in the industry life cycle (emerging, mature, declining)?
1. Is there potential to re-define the industry through innovation?
iii. Analyze the industry and your firm’s position with Porter’s 5 Forces
iv. What are the opportunities and threats related to the external environment?
v. How does the external environment influence the company’s strategic options?
d. Internal Analysis
i. Identify at least three key resources/resource bundles/capabilities for your company
1. In what part of the supply chain are resources/capabilities deployed?
ii. Analyze whether each key resource/capability is Valuable, Rare, and Costly to Imitate
(See Table 3.3)
1. Use the VRIO analysis for resources/bundles of resources (not for the firm as a
whole)
iii. Are there resources/capabilities that the company needs to acquire/develop?
iv. What strengths and weakness exist due to the internal environment?
v. How does the internal environment influence the company’s strategic options?
II. Conclusion & Recommendations
a. Strategic Options Identifications and Evaluation
i. What works what doesn’t
1. How has the current strategy affected performance (remember that some long
term strategies entail short-term sacrifices early in their implementation)?
2. Potential fixes?
ii. Describe multiple paths (as a collection of strategic & tactical choices) the company
could pursue
1. When you evaluate important tactical decisions establish where they lie within
the broader strategy
2. Look at each choice as either having two alternatives or a continuum along
which the firm can aim at a certain point
3. Evaluate each choice individually
a. What the advantages, disadvantages, and risks exist?
4. Evaluate the choices collectively
a. Is there path dependency (e.g. if you choose a certain direction for one
choice, will it dictate the direction for another choice)?
b. Could any pair or group combinations create conflict within the overall
strategy
c. Do any combinations create synergies?
5. What should the company do going forward?

 

 

 

Sample solution

Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell. 

In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.


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God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.

Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.

To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.

 

References

Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.

Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies, 4(8), 487.

Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.

Sample Answer

Sample Answer

 

Strategic Audit and Recommendations: Analyzing a Company for Future Success

Introduction

In conducting a strategic audit of a company, it is essential to assess its past performance, current strategies, and future potential for maintaining or achieving a competitive advantage in the market. By examining key aspects such as strategy analysis, performance analysis, external analysis, and internal analysis, strategic recommendations can be formulated to guide the company towards sustainable growth and success.

Thesis Statement

This essay aims to provide a comprehensive strategic audit of a chosen company, evaluating its current strategies, performance relative to competitors, industry analysis, and internal capabilities. By analyzing these factors, strategic recommendations will be proposed to enhance the company’s competitive position and ensure future success.

Strategy Analysis

– Evaluate the company’s current business-level and corporate-level strategies.
– Assess the extent of cost leadership and differentiation advantages.
– Analyze diversification, market competition, and strategic alliances.
– Provide concrete examples to demonstrate understanding of generic strategies.

Performance Analysis

– Compare the company’s performance against competitors using relevant metrics.
– Benchmark key financial and non-financial performance indicators.
– Identify areas of excellence and weakness to determine competitive advantage.
– Evaluate how the current strategy has influenced performance outcomes.

External Analysis

– Examine industry structure, competition levels, and life cycle stage.
– Explore opportunities for innovation and analyze Porter’s Five Forces.
– Identify external opportunities and threats influencing strategic options.

Internal Analysis

– Identify key resources, capabilities, and strengths/weaknesses.
– Assess the value, rarity, and imitability of critical resources.
– Determine if additional resources need to be acquired/developed.
– Understand how internal factors shape strategic decisions.

Conclusion & Recommendations

– Identify strategic options for improvement and evaluate their effectiveness.
– Propose potential fixes and multiple paths for the company to pursue.
– Consider advantages, disadvantages, risks, and synergies of each choice.
– Provide clear recommendations for the company’s future strategic direction.

In conclusion, a thorough strategic audit encompassing strategy analysis, performance evaluation, external assessment, and internal analysis is crucial for guiding a company towards sustained competitive advantage. By understanding past performance and current strategies in relation to industry dynamics and internal capabilities, strategic recommendations can be tailored to ensure the company’s success in a rapidly evolving business landscape.

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