WI 540: Strategy
Assignment 1
© Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University confidential and proprietar y information and may not be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed, in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University. This course guide is subject to change based on the needs of the class.
JWI 540 – Assign ment 1 (1186 ) Page 1 of 4
Assignment 1: Where to Play: Playing Field, Competition , & Your Organization
Due Week 4, Sunday, midnig ht of your time zone (W eight: 25 %)
Introduction
“Find out ev erything that you can about the playing f ield.
You should know what your competitors’ salespeople eat for breakfast.”
– Jack Welch –
Congratulations! Your CEO has just promoted you to Chief Strategy Officer for the company of your choice.
You have been commissioned to recommend a Game Winning Move that will allow your company to achie ve
strong revenue and profit growth as well as create a sustainable competitive advantage. Although your Game
Winning Move will not be presented to the CEO until Week 10, you have been asked to provide written updates
on your progress at Week 4 and W eek 8 .
You want to impress the CEO! You know that the best way to do this is to follow Jack’s logical 5 -slide approach
to strategy. Given there will be two interim updates, you have decided to focus your Week 4 content on the
Playing Field, the Competitio n, and your Organization. You will subsequently focus your Week 8 content on
What’s Around the Corner and your Game Winning Move. You will then synthesize all of this material into five
PowerPoint slides for your presentation in Week 10. Excellent! You now have a plan and are ready to tackle
the first brief!
Instructions for Assignment 1
Using the provided Assignment 1 Template , address the following
1. Detail the specific target segment of the market where you are choosing to compete. You should ensur e
the target segment is sufficiently large to achieve your company’s sales and profit growth objectives, but
sufficiently small so that your company can intimately understand consumer/customer needs and
compete effectively. As you will see, the template provided for this assignment guides you on how to
populate relevant information, including:
Your company
The industry for your organization of choice
The market size of this industry
Specific description of the segment of this industry in which you will compete (the Playing Field)
Brief explanation of why you selected this segment.
2. Identify the two most formidable competitors in your playing field and address the following for each:
How big is each competitor in this target segment ?
What is their most significant strength and their most significant weakness? Briefly explain how JWI 540: Strategy
Assignment 1
© Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University confidential and proprietar y information and may not be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed, in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University. This course guide is subject to change based on the needs of the class.
JWI 540 – Assign ment 1 (1186 ) Page 2 of 4
this strength and this weakness impact their ability to compete effectively.
Do their recent results indicate they are generally “winning” or “losing” in this Playing Field?
No te, you would be well -served to support your conclusions with data.
Has anyone (including new market entrants) introduced any game -changing new
products/technology/capabilities? Have they developed (or lost) a key competitive advantage?
3. You will also ne ed to “turn the mirror around” and look inward to assess the capabilities and
competencies of your Organization. Therefore, briefly address the following:
How big are we in this target segment ?
What is our most significant strength and our most significa nt weakness? Briefly explain how
this strength and this weakness impact our ability to compete effectively.
Do our recent results indicate we are generally “winning” or “losing” in this Playing Field? Note,
you would be well -served to support your conclus ions with data.
Have we introduced game -changing new products/technology/capabilities? Have we developed
(or lost) a key competitive advantage?
4. Conclude with a succinct final paragraph or two which highlights your most insightful “a -ha” conclusions
on t he target segment and the relative competitive balance of the three companies you analyzed.
Formatting and Submission Requirements
Use the Assignment 1 Template to complete this assignment. Ensure you address each element of the
template.
The submit ted template should be 2 to 3 pages (not including the cover page or appendixes/references
page.
Typed, single -spaced, professional font (size 10 – 12) with one -inch margins on all sides .
Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, your na me, professor’s name, and the course
title and date.
Use and reference at least 3 external sources to support your brief. Include a references page at the
end documenting sources and citations.
You may u se additional headings within the template to identi fy subtopics if this will improve the clarity of
your template .
You are welcome to include charts, tables, and gr aphs in -text or in an appendix.
Develop and support your research with facts and in-text citations, appendixes, and references.
JWI 540: Strategy
Assignment 1
© Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University confidential and proprietar y information and may not be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed, in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University. This course guide is subject to change based on the needs of the class.
JWI 540 – Assign ment 1 (1186 ) Page 3 of 4
RUBRIC Assignment 1
Criteria Unsatisfactory Low Pass Pass High Pass Honors
1. Complete the Playing Field section of the template to identify and persuasively explain the rationale for the target se gment where you will compete by. Weight: 20%
The Playing Field portion of the template is missing or is unsatisfactorily populated. There could be three or more missing sections.
The Playing Field portion of the template is partially populated but has no more than two missing or incomplete sections. The Recommende d Playing Field is missing key in segmenting the market, and the recommendation has material issues with regard to its size or conformance to the company’s current competencies and operations. The Rationale provides is not a satisfactory explanation of th e student’s logic.
The Playing Field portion of the template is satisfactorily populated, with no more than one missing or incomplete section s. The Recommended Playing Field demonstrates some ability to segment the market with the recommendation appearing to be an appropriately -sized segment and/ reasonably conforming to the company’s current competencies and operations. The Rationale provides satisfactory explanation of the student’s logic.
The Playing Field portion of the template is completely populat ed. The Recommended Playing Field demonstrates a strong understanding of the segmentation of the market and the recommendation presents an appropriately -sized segment that reasonably conforms to the company’s current competencies and operations. The Rati onale is clear, concise, logical, and persuasive.
The Playing Field portion of the template is exemplarily populated. The Recommended Playing Field demonstrates exceptional understanding of the segmentation of the market and the recommendation presents an appropriately -sized segment that strongly conforms to the company’s current competencies and operations. The Rationale is clear, concise, logical, and very persuasive.
2. Complete the Competitor sections of the template. Demonstrate understanding of each competitor and their position in the Playing Field.
Weight: 30%
The Competitor section of the template is missing or is unsatisfactorily populated. Contains irrelevant of unclear content.
At least 6 of the 10 Competitor fields are satisfactorily pop ulated. Size is partially described. Strengths and Weaknesses reflect less significant areas for each competitor, and the student has only partially linked these areas to their competitiveness. The student’s discussion of recent performance and Major Dev elopments is marginal.
At least 8 of the 10 Competitor fields are satisfactorily populated. Size is satisfactorily described. Strengths and Weaknesses reflect existing but less significant areas for each competitor, and the student has satisfactorily lin ked these areas to their competitiveness. The student’s discussion of recent performance and Major Developments is satisfactory.
The 10 Competitor fields of the template are completely populated (qualitative opinions on Size are acceptable). Strengths and Weaknesses reflect important and existing areas for each competitor, and the student has explained how these affect their ability to effectively compete. The student has articulated the recent performance of each competitor, and the Major Developments rep resent important aspects that are relevant for strategic consideration .
The 10 Competitor fields of the template are exemplarily populated (qualitative opinions on Size are acceptable). Strengths and Weaknesses reflect important and existing areas for eac h competitor, and the student has exemplarily explained how these affect their ability to effectively compete. The student has clearly articulated the recent performance of each competitor, and the Major Developments represent significant game -changing asp ects that are relevant for strategic consideration. JWI 540: Strategy
Assignment 1
© Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University confidential and proprietar y information and may not be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed, in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University. This course guide is subject to change based on the needs of the class.
JWI 540 – Assign ment 1 (1186 ) Page 4 of 4
3. Complete the Our Organization section of the template. Demonstrate understanding of our company and its competitiveness in the Playing Field.
Weight: 20%
The Our Organization section of the templa te is missing or is unsatisfactorily populated. Contains irrelevant or unclear content.
At least 3 of the 5 Our Organization fields are satisfactorily populated. Size is partially described. Strengths and Weaknesses reflect less significant areas for us; student has only partially linked these areas to our competitiveness. The student’s discussion of our recent performance and Major Developments is marginal.
At least 4 of the 5 Our Organization fields are satisfactorily populated. Size is satisfactorily described. Strengths and Weaknesses reflect existing but less significant areas for us; student has satisfactorily linked these areas to our competitiveness. The student’s discussion of our recent performance and Major Developments is satisfactory.
The Ou r Organization fields of the template are completely populated (qualitative opinions on Size are acceptable). Strengths and Weaknesses reflect important and existing areas for us, and the student has reasonably explained how these affect our ability to effectively compete. The student has articulated our recent performance, and the Major Developments represent important aspects that are relevant for strategic consideration .
The Our Organization fields of the template are exemplarily populated (qualitative opinions on Size are acceptable). Strength and Weakness reflect important and existing areas for us, and the student has exemplarily explained how these affect our ability to effectively compete. The student has clearly articulated our recent performance, and the Major Developments represent significant game – changing aspects that are relevant for strategic consideration.
4. Provide an effective and persuasive conclusion that is “fit for use” for a CEO. Weight: 15%
The conclusion is missing or is an unsat isfactory distillation of the template that does not provide a sufficient level of strategic insights and conclusions.
The conclusion is a partial distillation of the template with some important and relevant strategic insights and conclusions.
The con clusion is a satisfactory distillation of the template with important and relevant strategic insights and conclusions. The assertions may lack some clarity or conciseness and/or may not be highly persuasive.
The conclusion is a complete distillation of th e template with important and relevant strategic insights and conclusions and is presented succinctly and persuasively to the CEO. The conclusion does not include extraneous data that would not be relevant or important to the CEO.
The conclusion is an exemplary distillation of the template with important and relevant strategic insights and conclusions and is presented succinctly and persuasively to the CEO. The conclusion does not include extraneous data that would not be relevant or important to the CE O.
5. Present information professionally within the three -page limit, and support recommendations, assertions, and facts with in -text citations, appendixes, and references. Weight: 15%
Template is missing significant content and generally unprofession al in appearance or due to multiple mechanics and usage errors. Most recommendations, assertions, and facts are not supported with in – text citations, appendixes, and references.
Template is satisfactory in appearance. Several mechanics and usage errors ma ke parts of the text difficult for the reader to understand. Some recommendations, assertions, and facts are supported with in – text citations, appendixes, and references.
Template is well – written and generally professional in appearance. There may be a few mechanics and usage errors, but they do not have a major impact on the flow. Many recommendations, assertions, and facts are supported with in – text citations, appendixes, and references.
Template is succinct and well -written and within the three – page limi t (excluding cover, references, and appendices) and professional in appearance. It includes a cover page. Mechanics and usage errors, if any, are minor and have no impact on the flow. Most recommendations, assertions, and facts are supported with in-text citations, appendixes, and references.
Template is succinct and well -written and within the three -page limit (excluding cover, references, and appendices) and very professional in appearance. It includes a cover page. There are no mechanics or usage errors. All recommendations, assertions, and facts are exemplarily supported with in -text citations, appendixes, and references.