Several business case studies have been posted to Blackboard. Select a business from among the cases provided (list to be provided on Blackboard). Through the case study and additional research of articles and public company documents, develop a paper about business level strategy. Following Porter’s Five Force Model, your paper must address the following questions:
• What is (are) the main industry (industries) in which the company competes? How does the company address Porter’s Five Forces?
• Using S.W.O.T., identify the assets of the firm, the capabilities of the firm, the core competencies of the firm and its competitive advantage(s).
• What business level strategy does the firm seem to be pursuing in this industry? What corporate level strategies is the firm pursuing? Why?
• Have there been any major changes in its strategy recently? Why?
• How does company use the preceding information to gain & sustain competitive advantage or address its competitive disadvantage?
Be certain to provide a clear foundation of understanding regarding strategy and Porter’s model. Use peer-review references other than the textbook.
Papers should be a minimum of 10 complete pages (not part of a page) to a maximum of 15 pages. In addition, the paper should have a separate cover page and a separate reference page. You should include a minimum of three – five academic references. The paper must conform to APA style (Papers not properly citing sources will result in a full letter grade reduction). Please use 12-point type (either Arial or Times Roman type face), one-inch margins, double spaced, with a five-space indent for each paragraph. Spelling, grammar and punctuation count.
