Business analytics Milestone 2

Milestone 2: Business-Level Strategy

In this assignment you're going to analyze a company that was 'stuck-in-the-middle' until it went bankrupt or otherwise stopped operations sometime in the last twenty years. What should executives have done differently? Could the end of that company have been changed?  

For this milestone, you will put yourself in the shoes of a business analyst for that company before it's demise, and write a paper for executives which includes:

1. Why and how the company is stuck in the middle.

2. An explanation of the conditions in the firm's industry and the business-level strategy that the firm should pursue in response.  Explain and justify your recommendations.

3. A strategy recommendation for the firm's executives to pursue.

This assignment will enable  you to apply the material you've learned to the business case of your choosing.  This will deepen your knowledge of business-level strategy, and also enable you to research a firm or industry you're interested in.  You may focus on the same industry as you discussed in your previous assignment. 

For help finding an example of a 'stuck-in-the-middle' firm, review the examples included in the module and in this article.  You are welcome to select your firm from one of the course examples, or from outside of the course material, as long as the firm fits the criteria of being 'stuck in the middle'. You will do research for this assignment by searching for analyses, articles and news reports of the end of the company. Your milestone should draw on at least three sources (which need to be properly cited in a works cited). 

Guidelines

1. Your report should be 1-2 pages, and should be written in clear and professional language.  You will need to cite the sources you use using APA 7 style.  Your list of works cited does not count towards your page limit. 

2. If you need inspiration, visit the books and articles cited in the bibliography for this module; they contain many case studies you can draw on to inspire your work. Remember to cite your sources.

3. You can find information about the conditions within an industry using reports, economic forecasts, news articles, interviews or academic articles.  If you're having trouble locating information, reach out to the professor or to UMPI's library services.

What to include in your submission

Your assignment submission should include:

1. A short paper (1-2 pages) addressing the points outlined above in APA 7 style.

2. A list of works cited.