Learning Activity #1
Over 30 years ago Michael Porter identified a holistic approach to understanding how competitive forces shape strategy. He posited that the only way to truly insulate an organization from underlying economic volatility is by understanding the 5 competitive forces and how they relate, fundamentally, to the organization.
The five forces are:
- Rivalry among existing competitors
- The bargaining power of Suppliers
- Threat of New Entrants to the market
- The bargaining power of Buyers
- Threat of Substitute Products/Services
Using the industry/company selected in the Week 1 Learning Activity, identify the key drivers of competition for that industry and specifically for the selected company using the Five Force model. Explain how those external competitive forces are affecting the industry and company and the effect of those forces on the overall strategic planning processes uniquely for that company and generally for that industry. Offer supporting rationale for your explanation and be sure to reference your statements using proper APA formatting.
Learning Activity #2
Utilizing the industry/company selected in the Week 1 Learning Activity, develop a CPM (Competitive Profile Matrix) that compares/contrasts critical success factors for the industry across the selected company and 2 other companies in that industry. For example, if the industry was Retail and the company was Target, you might select Walmart and Costco as companies for comparison using the CPM. Offer supporting rationale for your explanation and be sure to reference your statements using proper APA formatting.