S is enrolled on T Company's management development programme. Although S has a financial background, the aim of the management development programme is to help him to gain a better appreciation of the external and competitive environment in which T Company =operates. As part of the management development programme, S has been asked to make a presentation to his peers on the importance of undertaking competitive analysis and the types of information that needs to be collected for this purpose.
Explain what S's presentation should include on:
The types of information that should be collected when undertaking competitor analysis.
It contain points to highlight the types of information that should be collected on competitors.
The first point would be to recognize the competitors for which information should be collected. This could be based on which competitors it perceives as posing the most threat.
Other types of information that should be collected as part of competitor analysis include:
- The present strategies of key competitors, for instance; how is the firm competing and where the firm is competing.
- Identifying competitors' current goals and objectives. For instance, is a particular competitor seeking sales growth or market share growth in an aggressive manner? Is it investing in new premises?