Response to the following:
Do you think that companies place enough emphasis on environmental scanning? Why, or why not? In your discussion, give an example of a company that does or does not place enough emphasis on environmental scanning.
PLEASE EXPLAIN WHETHER YOU AGREE WITH MY CLASSMATE RESPONSE TO THE ABOVE QUESTION AND WHY? (A MININUM OF 125 WORDS)
CLASSMATE'S POST:
"Environmental scanning is the internal communication of external information about issues that may potentially influence an organization's decision making process. Environmental scanning focuses on the identification of emerging issues, situations and potential pitfalls that may affect an organizations future" (Albright, 2004, p. 40). Technology is changing at a pace that some organizations are unable to keep up with. For example, in my home town of El Paso, Texas, there is a widely known locally ran business, which (up until only less than a year ago) has never accepted any form of payment, other than cash. It becomes a hassle anytime you want to go eat here, because you have to have cash on you, or make a pit stop at some ATM. Let us be real, who carries cash anymore? This eatery for years (in my opinion) failed to environmentally scan and keep up with the technology of today. Furthermore, this company failed to focus their business on emerging trends and the pitfalls that running a cash only business would incur. After years and years of running their business this way, I learned that very recently, they finally started accepting debit/credit cards and now their business is booming again. "Because of rapid changes in today's marketplace and new and emerging business practices, it is easy for an organization to fall behind by not keeping up in areas such as technology, regulations and various rising trends" (Albright, 2004, p. 40). In my opinion, if a company is okay with just making ends meet, then environmental scanning probably is not so important. Maybe a mom and pop shop only wants to stay small and only appeal to a certain customer base, but if an organization wants to grow and compete, then environmental scanning becomes important. I have been doing quite a bit of research on Walmart, we have all come to know, and love WalMart becomes it is everywhere. You can physically shop at a Walmart and find pretty much everything you need. I have found, that although Walmart is one of the most successful brick and mortar stores today, it continues to expand its reach via the internet, as it competes with companies such as Amazon. WalMart realizes that times are changing and that a new (and large) customer base wants to shop only online. Rather than remain stagnant, WalMart has invested millions of dollars, building up their own online shopping, thereby expanding their customer base and their profitability. "The focus on environmental scanning is on strategic thinking and planning. Its value comes from the identification and understanding of complex issues facing the organization" (Albright, 2004, p. 40). WalMart has definitely made strategic plans to move into the future, by bolstering its organization through technology. While WalMart also needs to prepare for certain threats and vulnerabilities with this, their organization as a whole has adopted the new culture and together they can take advantage of the positives, while doing their best to mitigate any negatives.
Reference:
Albright, K. S. (2004). Environmental scanning: Radar for success. Information Management Journal, 38(3), 38-45.