An Analysis of the Major Internal and External Environmental Factors Affecting Actopen in the Context of Hyperinflation in Zimbabwe and an Evaluation of How the Organisation Is Positioning Itself to Deal with the Issues.
Executive Summary
This report contains an analysis of major internal and external environmental factors affecting Actopen, and especially how the organization is positioning itself to deal with these factors.
Actopen is a wholly owned subsidiary of AXIGEN Corporation, a conglomerate listed on the Zimbabwe stock exchange. Major shareholders of AXIGEN are seated at corporate office, which share the same building as Actopen. This geographical closeness, together with uncertainty in the Zimbabwe environment has prompted continuous and frequent shareholder interest in the short-run activities of the business.
In this brief, an analysis of the external (mega) environment was done using the PECLIST model. The task environment was appraised using Porter’s Five Forces theory. The internal (micro) environment of Actopen was appraised using the SWOT analysis.
The brief also identifies Actopen’s shortfalls in dealing with environmental factors of heaviest impact. To overcome the shortfalls, it is recommended that Actopen develop exports into the Southern Africa region, develop products for other market segments and pursue cost leadership as a generic strategy.
The report further discusses implementation issues to be dealt with if recommendations are to be effective. These border on culture, structure and shareholder issues that promote successful change. Table of Contents
Contents Page
Cover page 1
Affirmation of own work 2
Executive summary 3
Table of contents 4
Introduction 6
The environment defined 7
The Macro-environment 8
Political factors 9
Economic factors 10
Legal factors 10
The task environment 11
Porter’s five forces model on Actopen 12
The Micro/Internal Environment 13
Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats 14
Strategic positioning for Actopen 15
Conclusion 18
Recommendations 20
Implementation Issues 20
Contents Page
References 26
Appendices
Appendix 1: Actopen value chain 28
Appendix 2: Porter’s Five Forces Model applied on Actopen 29
This report contains an analysis of major internal and external environmental factors affecting Actopen, and especially how the organization is positioning itself to deal with these factors.
Actopen is a wholly owned subsidiary of AXIGEN Corporation, a conglomerate listed on the Zimbabwe stock exchange. Major shareholders of AXIGEN are seated at corporate office, which share the same building as Actopen. This geographical closeness, together with uncertainty in the Zimbabwe environment has prompted continuous and frequent shareholder interest in the short-run activities of the business.
In this brief, an analysis of the external (mega) environment was done using the PECLIST model. The task environment was appraised using Porter’s Five Forces theory. The internal (micro) environment of Actopen was appraised using the SWOT analysis.
The brief also identifies Actopen’s shortfalls in dealing with environmental factors of heaviest impact. To overcome the shortfalls, it is recommended that Actopen develop exports into the Southern Africa region, develop products for other market segments and pursue cost leadership as a generic strategy.
The report further discusses implementation issues to be dealt with if recommendations are to be effective. These border on culture, structure and shareholder issues that promote successful change. Table of Contents
Contents Page
Cover page 1
Affirmation of own work 2
Executive summary 3
Table of contents 4
Introduction 6
The environment defined 7
The Macro-environment 8
Political factors 9
Economic factors 10
Legal factors 10
The task environment 11
Porter’s five forces model on Actopen 12
The Micro/Internal Environment 13
Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats 14
Strategic positioning for Actopen 15
Conclusion 18
Recommendations 20
Implementation Issues 20
Contents Page
References 26
Appendices
Appendix 1: Actopen value chain 28
Appendix 2: Porter’s Five Forces Model applied on Actopen 29
References: DELL. C., 2005, In Zimbabwe Independent, November 11 – 17, 2005, Harare: Zimind Publishers (Pvt) Ltd. ACTOPEN 2005/06 STRATEGY DOCUMENT. August 2005 WRITING INSTRUMENTS MARKET INDEX (First QuAXIGENer 2005)., June 2005 ACTOPEN ANNUAL REPORT (for year ending September 2005) JOHNSON HANNAGAN. T., 1998, Management Concepts & Practices. Second Edition. London: Pitman Publishing. MINTZBERG PORTER. M. E., 1980, Competitive Advantage. New York: Free Press. THE ZIMBABWE BUSINESS FORECAST REPORT, 2005, London: Business Monitor International. THOMPSON. A. and STRICKLAND. A. J., 1996, Strategic Management . Ninth Edition. Irwin. TORRINGTON, D SMIT, P. J. and CRONJE, G. J. (Eds), 1997,. Management Principles. Second Edition. Cape Town: Juta & Co. Ltd. TUTOR2U, 2005. Strategy – Competitive Advantage, (online) Available at: http://www.tutor2u.net/business/strategy/competitive_advantage.htm (Accessed: 14 October 2005). UN Report - Anna Tibaijuka (2005). Available at: http://www.unhabitat.org/zimbabwe_report_2005.asp (Accessed: 18 November 2005). Source: Adapted from Johnson and Scholes, (2002)., p161