Q.

2   Being a researcher in a service organization, how can you search the
opportunities and monitor the threats to your services?                            
 
THE  FOLLOWING  APPROACH  WOULD BE  USEFUL.
 
FIRST,  DEFINE  THE  PRODUCT.
BUSINESS PRODUCT I SERVICE
-what are your products/service [describe]
-how will you deliver it [with staff or on your own]
-what will be the cost  structure per  unit
-what will be your fixed overheads [ electricity/ water/ etc]
-what will be your variable overheads [ stationery etc
-what will be the quality of your  product
-will there be unique offers, which no one else offers
 
SECOND, CONDUCT  ANALYSIS
BUSINESS  CONTEXT
WHAT is happening in your industry
--is it growing or is there demand or is it stagnant?
-how fast it is growing?
-what kind  of  PRODUCTS  are being offered?
-what prices are being charged
-what is the quality of the  products
-what is the capacity I is it in excess of the demand. etc
 
THIRD, STUDY  /  ANALYZE  THE
BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT
-who are the potential competitors
-what is the degree of competition
-what is the basis of competition-~price/ quality /facilities etc
-how easy is it to enter the competition
-what are the barriers for entry
-how do they market their  PRODUCTS -detail please etc etc
 
 
FOURTH,  ANALYZE   STRATEGICALLY  THE
BUSINESS MARKET
-WHO are your potential customers
-what is the purchasing behavior of the customers (good service /quality/speedy etc]
-what factors affect the buying  behavior of the customers
-what are the preferences of the target market
-is there a seasonal trend [season / lean periods/ high demand period etc]
-what isthe demographic trends [gender/ age/ profession/ etc]
-what services are in demand in the market
 
 
 
CONDUCT  A  THOROUGH
PESTEL  ANALYSIS
 
-is  also known as   PEST  in some  places
-is  also  known as  STEEPLE  in some  places.
 
IT  IS   A  MATTER  OF  HOW  MUCH   DEPTH  YOU WANT  TO  REACH.
 
 
 
The STEEPLE Analysis:
-Social/demographic,[S]
-Technological,          [T]
-Economic,                 [E]
-Environmental (natural),[E]
-Political,                       [P]
-Legal                            [L]
-and Ethical factors.      [E]
 
 
 
 
The  STEEPLE    factors play an important role in the value creation opportunities of a strategy. However
they are usually outside the control of the corporation and must normally be considered as either
threats or opportunities.
Below    you  will  find examples of each of these factors.
 
 
Political (incl. Legal)   [ [Poltical] EST[Environment][Legal] ]
 
-Environmental regulations and protection
[what  are  the  government regualtions/ protection laws  that  must be  observed ]
 
-Tax policies
what tax  hinder the business and what  taxes  incentives  are available]
 
-International trade regulations and restrictions
[ does  the  government    encourage  exports / with  high tariffs  on  imports]
 
-Contract enforcement law/Consumer protection
[does  the  government  enforce  on  consumer  protection ]
 
-Employment laws]
[ is the  government    encouraging  skilled  immigrants  with  temp. permits]
 
-Government organization / attitude
[ does  the  government  have  a   very  positive  attitude  towards  this   industry]
 
-Competition regulation
[ are  there   regulation  for  limiting  competition]
 
-Political Stability
[ politically ,  does the   government    have   a  very   stable  government ]
 
-Safety regulations
[ has  the  government      adopted  some  of  the  modern  safety regulations]
 
 
-Economic growth
[  what  is  the economic growth rate  /  what  are  the  reasons ]
 
-Interest rates & monetary policies
[ are  the  interest  rates    under control /  is there   a  sound  monetary  policies]
 
-Government spending
[is  government  spending  is  significant   and  is it   under control ]
 
-Unemployment policy
[what  is  the  employment / unemployment  policies  of the government ]
 
-Taxation
[  has  the  taxation    encouraged  the  industry ]
 
-Exchange rates
[ is   there  well  managed   exchange  controls  and  is it  helping  the  industry]
 
-Inflation rates
[ is  the  inflation  well   under  control ]
 
-Stage of the business cycle
[ is  your    industry  is  on  the   growth  pattern]
 
-Consumer confidence
[ is  the  consumer  confidence   is   high/ strong and  if  not, why ]
 
 
 
-Income distribution
[is there   balanced   income  distribution   policy ]
 
-Demographics, Population growth rates, Age distribution
[ what  is   population   growth  and  why ]
 
-Labor / social mobility
[ what   are the  labor  policies  and  is  there  labor  mobility]
 
-Lifestyle changes
[ are  there  significant  lifestyle   changes     taking  place--more  modernization/ why  ]
 
-Work/career and leisure attitudes
[ are  the  population      career  minded  and  are  seeking  better  lifestyle]
 
-Education
[ what  are  the  education  policies /  is  it  successful ]
 
-Fashion, hypes
[are  the   people    becoming  fashion  conscious ]
 
-Health consciousness & welfare, feelings on safety
[ are  the  people     becoming  health  consciousness]
 
-Living conditions
[ is the  living  conditions   improving  fast  and  spreading  rapidly]
 
 
Technological  [  PES [Technology] EL]
 
Government research spending
[is  the  government    spending  on research  and  development]
 
Industry focus on technological effort
[are  the   industries    focused  on  using  improved  technology]
 
New inventions and development
[ are  new  inventions     being   encouraged  for  developments]
 
Rate of technology transfer
[ is  the  rate  of  technology  transfer  is  speeding  up ]
 
(Changes in) Information Technology
[ is  the   information  technology    rapidly  moving  and  is  there  government  support]
 
(Changes in) Internet
[ is the   internet  usage    rapidly  increasing   and  why]
 
FOR  EACH  OF  THE  ELEMENTS,  YOU CAN  ASK  MORE  QUESTIONS
AND  SEEK  THE  FACTUAL  SITUATION.
 
 
 
 
PORTER'S   FIVE  FORCE   ANALYSIS
 
 
What is the Five Forces model of Porter? Description
The Five Forces model of Porter is an Outside-in business unit strategy tool that is used to make an
analysis of the attractiveness (value) of an industry structure. The Competitive Forces analysis is
made by the identification of 5 fundamental competitive forces:
1.   Entry of competitors. How easy or difficult is it for new entrants to start competing, which barriers do
exist.
2.   Threat of substitutes. How easy can a product or service be substituted, especially made cheaper.
3.   Bargaining power of buyers. How strong is the position of buyers. Can they work together in ordering
large volumes.
4.   Bargaining power of suppliers. How strong is the position of sellers. Do many potential suppliers exist
or only few potential suppliers, monopoly?
5.   Rivalry among the existing players. Does a strong competition between the existing players exist? Is
one player very dominant or are all equal in strength and size.
Sometimes a sixth competitive force is added:
6.   Government.
Porter's Competitive Forces model is probably one of the most often used business strategy tools. It has
proven its usefulness on numerous occasions. Porter's model is particularly strong in thinking
Outside-in.
 
Threat of New Entrants depends on:
·   Economies of scale.
·   Capital / investment requirements.
·   Customer switching costs.
·   Access to industry distribution channels.
·   Access to technology.
·   Brand loyalty. Are customers loyal?
·   The likelihood of retaliation from existing industry players.
·   Government regulations. Can new entrants get subsidies?
Threat of Substitutes depends on:
·   Quality. Is a substitute better?
·   Buyers' willingness to substitute.
·   The relative price and performance of substitutes.
·   The costs of switching to substitutes. Is it easy to change to another product?
Bargaining Power of Suppliers depends on:
·   Concentration of suppliers. Are there many buyers and few dominant suppliers?
·   Branding. Is the brand of the supplier strong?
·   Profitability of suppliers. Are suppliers forced to raise prices?
·   Suppliers threaten to integrate forward into the industry (for example: brand manufacturers threatening
to set up their own retail outlets).
·   Buyers do not threaten to integrate backwards into supply.
·   Role of quality and service.
·   The industry is not a key customer group to the suppliers.
·   Switching costs. Is it easy for suppliers to find new customers?
Bargaining Power of Buyers depends on:
·   Concentration of buyers. Are there a few dominant buyers and many sellers in the industry?
·   Differentiation. Are products standardized?
·   Profitability of buyers. Are buyers forced to be tough?
·   Role of quality and service.
·   Threat of backward and forward integration into the industry.
·   Switching costs. Is it easy for buyers to switch their supplier?
Intensity of Rivalry depends on:
·   The structure of competition. Rivalry will be more intense if there are lots of small or equally sized
competitors; rivalry will be less if an industry has a clear market leader.
·   The structure of industry costs. Industries with high fixed costs encourage competitors to manufacture
at full capacity by cutting prices if needed.
·   Degree of product differentiation. Industries where products are commodities (e.g. steel, coal) typically
have greater rivalry.
·   Switching costs. Rivalry is reduced when buyers have high switching costs.
·   Strategic objectives. If competitors pursue aggressive growth strategies, rivalry will be more intense. If
competitors are merely "milking" profits in a mature industry, the degree of rivalry is typically
low.
·   Exit barriers. When barriers to leaving an industry are high, competitors tend to exhibit greater rivalry.
 
 
NOW   STUDY/   ANALYZE  YOUR  OWN  PRODUCT  SALES
 
BUSINESS –SALES
-what opportunities do you see for your business
-please define quantitatively and qualitatively
-what are your targets
-what is your sales objectives[ forecast for 3 years at least]
–sales forecast by units/dollars [for three years]
-what factors are likely to affect your sales objectives
-sales minus cost of sales= gross contribution[ rough estimate]
-in your terms, how do you plan to achieve these objectives
-what strategy would you adopt
-what will be your marketing strategy
-what will be your promotion plans
-what media are available etc etc
 
THESE QUESTIONS ARE MEANT TO FACILITATE YOUR THINKING
ON THE  SUBJECT  OF
 
-your  product
-your  current  performance
-your  opportunity
-your  threats
-the  required  strategy 
which  will help  to  gain  the  opportunity.
 
THEN  YOU  RUN THE  FEASIBILITY   REPORT.
 
THEN  YOU   DEVELOP  THE  BUSINESS PLAN.