8: Strategic Analysis - Understanding a Firm’s Competitive Environment
After reading this chapter, you should be able to answer these questions:
- What is strategic analysis and why do firms need to analyze their competitive environment?
- What is a SWOT analysis and what can it reveal about a firm?
- What makes up a firm’s external macro environment, and what tools do strategists use to understand it?
- What makes up a firm’s external micro environment, and what tools do strategists use to understand it?
- How and why do managers conduct an internal analysis of their firms?
- What does it mean to compete with other firms in a business environment, what does it mean when a firm has a competitive advantage over its rivals, and what generic strategies can a firm implement to gain advantage over its rivals?
- What elements go into determining a firm’s strategic position?