Conducting strategic analysis. Strategic analysis - what is it? Strategic environment analysis

The most important element strategic management is strategic analysis , allowing to identify the current and possible future state of the external and internal environment companies.

To the most common methods strategic analysis can include the following:

SWOT analysis;
PEST+M analysis;
analysis of the company's product portfolio (matrix bcg, or matrix McKinsey ).

The simplest (in terms of the perception of results) and the most common tool for strategic analysis is SWOT analysis.

In 1963, at a Harvard conference on business policy, Professor Kenneth Andrews for the first time publicly announced the acronym SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats), which means "Strength", "Weakness", "Opportunities", "Threats". Since the 1960s to this day, SWOT analysis is widely used in the process of strategic planning. Known, but scattered and unsystematic ideas about the company and the competitive environment, this method made it possible to formulate in the form of a logically consistent scheme of interaction of forces, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.

Force - it's something the company excels at, or some feature that gives it more value.

Weakness - this is the absence of something important for the functioning of the company, something that it fails (in comparison with others), or something that puts it in unfavorable conditions.

Possibilities are defined as something that gives a firm a chance to do something new: release New Product, win new customers, introduce new technology and so on.

Threat - this is something that can harm the company, deprive it of significant advantages.

As a rule, a SWOT analysis, i.e. analysis of strengths and weaknesses organization, opportunities and threats emanating from environment, is carried out using auxiliary tables (matrices). The simplest form of presenting the results of the SWOT analysis is shown in Table. 3.2.

Table 3.2

Matrix SWOT analysis

At the intersection of the blocks, four fields are formed:
SIV (strength and opportunity);
SIS (forces and threats);
WLS (weaknesses and opportunities);
SLN (weaknesses and threats).

On each of the fields, paired combinations are selected, which must be taken into account when developing a strategy. For example, in relation to couples from the SIV field, the strategy should use the strengths of the organization to get the most out of the opportunities provided by the external environment. For couples from the SIS field, the strategy should include using the strengths of the organization to prevent threats, etc.

In fact, the intersection fields are sets of possible scenarios for the development of events. For example, the possibility of the external environment "Growing consumer interest in the product" and the strength of the organization "Active marketing policy"may make up a pair of SIVs" Sales expansion by attracting new customers. "This pair of SIVs can become a real scenario for the development of events favorable for the organization, but only if the implementation of the named strength, taking into account the possibilities of the external environment, is fixed in the strategy and accepted as one of goals (tasks) of the organization.

When choosing a strategy, it should be remembered that opportunities and threats can turn into their opposites. Thus, an untapped opportunity can become a threat if a competitor exploits it.

In table. 3.3 shows the categories most often included in the SWOT analysis. Each SWOT is unique and may include one or two of them, or even all at once. Each element, depending on the perception of buyers, can turn out to be both a strength and a weakness (when analyzing the internal component). Accordingly, an opportunity can become a threat (when analyzing the external component).

Table 33

Indicators required for conducting SWOT-analysis

Environmental indicators

Indicators of the immediate environment

Indicators of the internal environment of the company

Economic forces –

GDP, inflation rates, unemployment rate, interest rate, labor productivity, taxation rates, balance of payments, savings rates, etc.

Political factors– a clear idea of the intention of the organs state power with regard to the development of society and the means by which the state intends to carry out its policy.

Market factors- Numerous factors that can have a direct impact on the successes and failures of an organization.

Technological factors- the possibilities that science opens up for production new products.

International Factors– Threats and opportunities may arise from ease of access to raw materials, the activities of foreign cartels (such as OPEC), changes in the exchange rate and political decisions in countries acting as investment targets or markets.

Legal factors– study of laws and other regulations, the effectiveness of the legal system.

Social factors– attitude of people to work and quality of life, customs and beliefs, demographic structure, sharing of values, population growth, level of education, etc.

Buyers- geographical position, demographic characteristics, social psychological characteristics, the attitude of buyers to the product.

Suppliers- the cost of the goods supplied, quality assurance, time schedule of deliveries, punctuality and obligation to comply with the conditions of the supplier.

Competitors- Identification of strengths and weaknesses.

labor market

Company personnel- their potential, qualifications, interests.

Management organization.

Production, including organizational, operational and technical and technological characteristics, Scientific research and development.

Firm finances.

Marketing.

Organizational culture

As already noted, one of the goals of SWOT analysis is to identify factors that significantly affect the company's business in order to develop a strategy. The next logical step that improves the quality of the results of strategic analysis is the structuring of the identified factors, i.e. dividing them into groups. Any classification, of course, must have a purpose. The SWOT analysis format is detailed in PEST+M analysis, in which all environmental factors are divided into five groups of factors (Fig. 3.5).

political (P);
economic (E);
social (S);
technological (T);
market environment factors (M).

Moreover, the last group of factors (market environment) is recommended to be divided into three groups: suppliers, buyers and competitors. And competitors, in turn, - on three more groups of factors: current competitors, potential competitors and substitute products.

Rice. 3.5.

The PEST+M analysis technique, like many others, was developed in the West.

The political factor of the external environment should be studied first of all, since the main political issue is the question of power. And the central government regulates the mechanism of circulation of money in the state, as well as a number of other key conditions for obtaining basic resources for the activities of any organization.

Analysis of the economic aspect of the external environment of the organization allows us to understand how the main economic resources are formed and distributed at the state level. For most specific organizations, this is the most important general condition their business activities.

The social component of the external environment is most associated with the formation consumer preferences population. This, as a rule, determines its special importance in the analysis of the possible demand for the organization's product in a strategic perspective.

The significance of the technological factor of the external environment is also almost obvious. IN modern conditions With rapid technological change, any organization faces the constant threat of losing a market for a product due to being supplanted by a technologically superior product. Therefore, the purpose of the strategic analysis of the technological aspect of the development of the external environment is as follows: the analysis should provide the organization with information that allows it to adapt in time to the production and (or) implementation of a technologically promising product; in parallel with this, the organization must have time to receive sufficient profit from its traditional products and at the same time be able to abandon them in time in favor of more promising ones.

When developing strategic plan you can rely on the key factors identified as a result of the SWOT analysis or PEST + M analysis. These factors may be interrelated, and from the analysis of this relationship, new conclusions can be drawn, which will be reflected in the company's strategy.

In addition, when conducting a strategic analysis, one of the important issues is the company's future product portfolio. It is necessary to understand what these areas of activity will be, how they will be financed and what their positioning will be in the future. Therefore, when developing a strategy, it is recommended to use one more of the standard methods: this is a matrix Boston Consulting Group (BCG) or McKinsey matrix.

In accordance with these methods, all areas of the company's activities are positioned in the coordinates: the attractiveness of the market and the competitive status of the company in this market.

In the matrix BCG the hypothesis that each of these indicators can be estimated using one parameter is used. To assess the attractiveness of the market, the growth rate of the market is used, and to assess the competitive status of the company in this market, the market share occupied by the company.

In the matrix McKinsey a more complex method for assessing the attractiveness of the market and the competitive status of the company is used. It can be used both in growing markets and in stagnant ones. This is the main difference between the matrix BCG from the matrix McKinsey. The matrix for the strategic direction analysis offers the following set of strategic decisions (Fig. 3.6).

Rice. 3.6.

Other methods can be used for analysis, for example, value chain analysis, cost analysis, modified factor analysis scheme of the firm. Du Pont , the financial analysis.

In strategic management, the results of the analysis are used at all stages and can influence the formulation of the organization's mission, on their basis the organization's goals (and subsequently strategies) are determined.

The means of transforming the data obtained in the process of analyzing the environment into a plan for the organization's strategy is strategic analysis. Its tools are quantitative methods, formal models and the study of the specifics of a given organization. Typically, strategic analysis goes through two stages - a comparative one, when the gap between the organization's goals and real opportunities is analyzed, and identifying strategic alternatives, when possible options development of this organization. This is followed by the final stage of strategy development, the selection of the most appropriate option and the preparation of a strategic plan.

The first way of analysis

Analyzing the gap is quite simple, and it is effective method in management, when the first stage of strategic analysis is carried out. Its purpose is to determine the gap between the desires of the organization and its capabilities, and if such a gap exists, it is necessary to search for the most effective filling of it. Strategic analysis requires a certain algorithm in the study of such a gap.

First you need to identify the main interest of the company, which is expressed in terms of strategic planning. Increasing sales, for example. Further, real opportunities are clarified, a strategic analysis of the environment is carried out and the future state of the organization is projected, for example, in five years. It is necessary to define specific indicators in the strategic plan that would correspond to the main interests of the company. Then the difference between the identified indicators and the possibilities dictated by the real state of affairs is established. And, finally, special programs are being developed that contain ways to fill this gap.

The second way of analysis

The second way to conduct a gap analysis involves determining the difference between extremely modest forecasts and the highest expectations. If, for example, management expects a twenty percent real rate of return on their capital invested, and research shows that the real rate is a maximum of fifteen percent, then a detailed discussion of fundraising and the necessary measures to fill that five percent gap is needed.

You can fill it in in different ways. It can be an increase in productivity to achieve the desired twenty percent, or the abandonment of ambition and satisfaction with fifteen. The last one is definitely a joke. But in any case, a strategic analysis of the organization will certainly make it necessary to find the right way to fill the existing gap between the desired and one's own capabilities.

classic model

One of the most powerful models of strategic analysis of an organization appeared back in 1926, when the dynamics of costs were already being studied and the experience curve was looming. IN this method linking the definition of strategy and the achievement of benefits through minimal costs. How did the costs decrease if the volume of production increased? This was due to a number of specific factors. A deep internal strategic analysis of each of them was carried out. First of all, costs were reduced due to the expansion of production, in which new technologies almost always appear that give such an advantage. In parallel - the choice of the most effective way organization of production and training of personnel with the transfer of such experience. In this way, the organization achieves economies of scale.

The experience curve is applied mainly in the field of material production. Accordingly, the purpose of strategic analysis is to identify the main direction of the organization's strategy. Usually it is the capture of as much market share as possible, because only the largest of the competitors have the opportunity to achieve the lowest costs, and therefore the highest profits. But the reduction in costs may not be associated solely with an increase in production. It is much more important to have high-tech equipment, which is designed for absolutely any production scale, including a very small one. Today, for example, modular equipment or computerization has penetrated literally everywhere, and this cannot but provide high performance. The main thing is to have opportunities for maneuvering, for quick restructuring in order to solve the most diverse and most specific tasks. This model, of course, eventually revealed shortcomings. The main one is the one that provides for taking into account only a single internal problem of the organization, and the strategic analysis of the external environment is not carried out at all (that is, the needs of customers are ignored, for example).

Market and life cycle

Strategic planning and strategic analysis cannot do without an analysis of market dynamics, for which it is necessary to apply a well-known model that repeats, by analogy with the life cycle of a biological being, the life cycle of any product. In the marketplace, a product also goes through major stages, each with its own level of distribution and many distinct marketing traits. For example, a new baby product is born and immediately enters life, that is, the market, where at first no great achievements are expected from it, that is, sales will be small, and manufacturers will focus only on growth.

This stage may be delayed, but if the baby is healthy and the products are of high quality, he will grow up quickly, and sales will increase. The second stage is the growth stage, requiring a different strategy. Next comes maturity: the strategy focuses on stability, because sales are stable. And finally, old age. The market is saturated with this product, a decline occurs, sales are declining, and therefore a reduction strategy is being developed. The purpose of this model is to determine the right strategy in business, tracking the path of products in the market step by step. There are a lot of modifications to such life cycles, it all depends on the type of product. But it is impossible to firmly tie modern strategic analysis to the life cycle model.

Products and market

In 1975, Steiner, a prominent economist, proposed a new model, which is a kind of matrix with the classification of markets, as well as products that already exist, new, related to the existing, and completely new. This matrix can show different levels risk and degree of probability successful production and benefit from a variety of market and product combinations. This model is still used today to conduct strategic management analysis to determine the likelihood of success at the very beginning, when choosing a type of business, without losing the ability to see the ratio of investments for different units. All this means that you can quite accurately form a portfolio valuable papers organizations.

The development of strategic analysis takes place during the formation of portfolio models, since it is then that it becomes possible to predict both the present and the future of a starting business, to consider the attractiveness of the market and the ability of new products to compete on it. The first classic portfolio model came from the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). With its help, the main positions of the new business were determined. There are four of them:

1. A highly competitive business designed for a fast growing market. The position is ideal - "star".

2. The business is also highly competitive, but created for markets that are already mature and saturated, even prone to stagnation. This is an excellent source of cash for the organization, which is called - "cash cow", "money bag".

3. Business without good competitive positions, but operating in a promising market. This is not yet a very well-defined future, with a question mark.

4. A business with a weak competitive position in a market that is stagnant. These are the outcasts of the business world.

Using the Boston Model

The BCG model is used to determine interrelated conclusions about the position of a business, about each of its business units within the organization and, of course, about the strategic perspectives. Using this matrix, the management of the organization forms a portfolio, since combinations of all capital investments in different industries and business units are determined. What else is good about this model: the BCG matrix offers various options strategies. With an increase in market share and business growth, the "question mark" easily turns into a "star", and following the "cash cow" strategy, that is, by maintaining market share, the business will also retain revenues that are important for financial innovation and solving the challenges facing each growing type of business.

The third option is the so-called "harvest", when the business receives a short-term share of the profits in maximum dimensions even if it reduces market share. This strategy is not for strong businesses. This is how the old "cows" and "question marks" act, which failed to become an exclamation. If opportunities to invest in difficult business, and the positions are not improving, there is a strategy for this case. The business is liquidated, and the proceeds are used in other industries.

Advantages and disadvantages

The advantages of the BCG model are, firstly, that it can be used to analyze the relationships between all the business units that make up the organization, pursuing the longest-term goals. Secondly, this model is able to analyze the various stages of development of the business as a whole and each of its business units. And the most important advantage: the model is simple and easy to understand, but nevertheless offers an excellent approach to collecting a business portfolio (that is, the organization's securities).

There are two disadvantages. The first is that with the help of this model, business opportunities are not always accurately assessed, not all opportunities are calculated. They may advise leaving the market, when not all internal and external changes have yet been completed, and the position of the business could still be straightened out and even move up to a successful one. For example, a certain farmer in the seventies barely and then went into fashion for organic products, and his business could become a "cash cow", but too late, he was sold, because the BCG model did not foresee this possibility. The second drawback is an excessive focus on cash flows (cash), and in fact they are almost always supported by investments, this way is much more efficient. The focus on ultra-fast growth is also not so good, because it does not see the possibilities of applying new and more effective management methods to improve the business.

Multi-factor matrix

This is a more sophisticated version of the portfolio model developed by McKinsey & Company, a well-known international consulting company that even operates in Russia. This matrix was ordered by the General Electric Corporation. Next to a simple portfolio model, a multi-factor matrix has many advantages and no less significant disadvantages.

First of all, it is an account of a large number factors of both external and internal environment of the organization. But, using this model, it is also impossible to completely protect the analysis from erroneous conclusions. Perhaps that is why there are no specific behavioral recommendations for activities in a particular market. A subjective or distorted assessment of the position of a business in the market is also possible.

Purpose of strategic analysis

The main goal is to assess the largest impacts on the current and future position of the analyzed organization, it is equally important to determine the specific impact on strategic choice. Based on the identified goals of the organization, the main tasks facing the organization are also determined, which will help to provide indicators for strategic planning (moreover, completely regardless of the nature of these indicators - whether it is financial or not).

This means that the first step in a strategic analysis will be to identify the following components: the main goal, main tasks, expectations and empowerment relationships within the organization. Against the background of the goal and the main tasks, it is much easier to formulate strategies and all the criteria by which they will have to be evaluated. In the goal - the whole meaning of the existence of the business and the nature of the organization. The main tasks are set and long-term, so that this goal is achieved.

External environment and internal

This is the second component of strategic analysis - where the organization exists, and all elements of the external environment - economic, social, technological, political - should be investigated. Since the external environment is constantly fluid and forced to undergo significant changes, the organization will have to solve the most important strategic problems as they arise. There is a micro and macro environment, and they are interconnected with each other. The microenvironment is the immediate environment. It is necessary to analyze the competitive structure of this industry, where this organization has worked, as well as the parameters of development of this industry. The macroenvironment offers for analysis macroeconomic, social, legal, technological, international factors that directly affect this organization.

The third component of strategic analysis is the internal environment of the organization. It determines the quality and completeness of the resources at the disposal of the organization, taking into account key disadvantages and advantages this business. Internal strategic analysis reveals the overall picture of the constraints and impacts that are imposed on strategic choices, identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the organization, identifying expectations and opportunities to influence the activity planning process.

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