Competitive Strategy and the External Environment

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses R. Beal's article on environmental scanning and its effect on competitive strategy and organizational performance in small firms. The writer describes the two main hypotheses of the research project, the primary research and subsequent factor analysis in the article and points out some glaring omissions and contradictions. The writer concludes that the findings in the article are too generic to be useful for small manufacturers, and that the contradictions should be smoothed out in order to present a cohesive article.

Outline:
Introduction
Critique of the Article
Critique of Environmental Scanning: Frequency and Scope
Summary

From the Paper:

"Where Beal fails to bring greater value into this specific area of research however is in not delving deeper into which specific processes are those that are the most targeted for best manufacturing process definition and improvement. Critically analyzing this specific and highly significant result of the research, one could argue that the best manufacturing processes across industries vary significantly by size of manufacturer and that even in the sampling frame of this research there is wide variation."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Beal , R (2000).Competing effectively: Environmental scanning, competitive strategy, and organizational performance in small manufacturing firms. Journal of Small Business Management. 1, 27 - 476.

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