Business Environment Analysis Research Paper

Exclusively available on Available only on IvyPanda® Made by Human No AI

Environmental research is generally considered as the central analysis tool for business activity. The aim of the paper is to analyze the business environment of the corporations such as Microsoft, Google, Apple, HP, and IBM. The analysis will be performed from the perspective of the demographic, sociocultural, political / legal, technological, economic, and global aspects. Considering the fact that all the analyzed corporations are American, the environmental factors will be similar for all the companies.

Demographic

The demographic aspect of the business environment entails several sub-aspects. Originally, these are the aging population and the approaching demographic crisis, as baby boomers are going to retire soon. The aspect of rising affluence points out the necessity of paying attention for more expensive technologies and production of the higher class goods. Nevertheless, the greater disparities in the incomes of the entire population will have to make the companies think of diversification, for satisfying the needs of all the income levels. (Sokuvitz, 2006)

The fact is that the matters of the changing composition of the ethnic background does not play a serious role in business performance, as these corporations have an opportunity to search and suit professionals from all over the world.

Sociocultural

These factors entail the issue of the increased involvement of women into industry. Thus, women become not only managers, accountants, secretaries etc. Considering the specifications of the analyzed companies, women become IT specialists more and more often. (Applbaum, 2005)

The companies often practice employing temporary and outsourced workers for performing temporary (seasonal) assignments. On the one hand it decreases the unemployment rates, on the other hand, the companies have to spend excess financial reserves for training these temporary and outsourced workers.

Another employment concern is the factor of the increased concern for fitness. It is fashionable and popular to be fit, so, companies often resort to encouraging their employees to attend fitness clubs. (Mendenhall, Kuhlmann and Stahl, 2001)

The increased concerns for environmental protection makes companies change the production and industry capacities for more environmentally safe.

Postponement of family formation is positive for employment policies, nevertheless, it may increase the development of the demographic crisis. Thus, when baby boomers retire, the young workers will find this time suitable for creating a family, thus interrupting their work for a while.

The aspects of the political factor generally entail the issues, which are closely associated with the tort reform, the socially oriented legislation and the acts, regulating the employment issues. Originally, these acts create a valuable environment for the employees, as they are more protected. As for the companies, they have an opportunity to get governmental support and tax compensation for employing physically disabled people. (Blenkhorn and Fleisher, 2005)

As for the matters of taxation, it should be emphasized that these rules have become a bit stricter, nevertheless, the analyzed companies have nothing to worry, if they are exemplary taxpayers.

Technological

These aspects are of various natures. The emergence of internet, and expansion of the global network aspects have become the most positive and valuable factors, which promoted the development of business. Along with the elaboration of new materials, the development of computer aided design and manufacturing systems increased the progress, and helped to simplify the efforts by engineers and designers. Nevertheless, the matters of global warming have become the restricting factor, as the increased requirements are issued for the manufacturing norms and standards of the materials.

Economic

Interest rates. The growth of the interest rates is negative for those companies who are closely cooperating with banks. All the corporations, mentioned in the paper, have sufficient autonomy reserves and capabilities for the relatively independent acting.

The problem of the unemployment rates is partially resolved by the practices of temporary workers and outsourcing. These matters have been already described. The related matter of the consumer price index is closely associated with the matters of the increasing levels of income within the population. It is the great opportunity to increase the amount of non budget gadgets and manufactured production.

Trends in GDP and Changes in stock market valuations are the matters of the national economy. These issues encourage the development of production and manufacturing within the analyzed corporations.

Global

The global issues, which are mainly associated with the global trade and expansion of the economics of the eastern countries, encourage the development of the economic and business performance of the regarded companies, and expand the cooperation with India, China, Japan and other countries.

Activities of the organizations like NAFTA, ASEAN, IMF are claimed to regulate the economic relations of the countries with other States and multinational corporations.

Analysis of the Factors

MicrosoftGoogleAppleHPIBM
Demographic
  • Aging population
NegativeNegativeNegativeNegativeNegative
  • Rising Affluence
NeutralneutralpositivepositivePositive
  • Ethnic composition
NeutralNeutralNeutralNeutralNeutral
  • Disparities in income levels
NeutralNeutralPositivePositivePositive
Sociocultural
  • Women in the workforce
PositivePositivePositivePositivePositive
  • Temporary workers
PositivePositiveNegativeNegativeNegative
  • Fitness
PositivePositivePositivePositivePositive
  • Environment
NegativeNegativeNegativeNegativeNegative
Political / legal
  • Tort reform
NeutralNeutralNeutralNeutralNeutral
  • Social acts
PositivePositivePositivePositivePositive
  • Employment acts
PositivePositivePositivePositivePositive
  • Taxation
NeutralNeutralNeutralNeutralNeutral
Technological
  • Development of technologies
PositivePositivePositivePositivePositive
  • Global warming and pollution
NegativeNegativeNegativeNegativeNegative
Economic
  • Interest Rates
NegativePositivePositiveNegativePositive
  • Unemployment
NegativeNegativeNeutralNeutralNeutral
  • GDP
PositivePositiveNegativeNegativeNeutral
Global
Global tradePositivePositivePositivePositivePositive
OrganizationsPositivePositivePositivePositivePositive
Eastern economiesPositivePositivePositivePositivePositive

Bibliography

Applbaum, Kalman. “Survival of the Biggest: Business Policy, Managerial Discourse, and Uncertainty in a Global Business Alliance.” Anthropological Quarterly 72.4 (2005): 155

Blenkhorn, David L., and Craig S. Fleisher, eds. Competitive Intelligence and Global Business. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2005.

Mendenhall, Mark E., Torsten M. Kuhlmann, and Günter K. Stahl, eds. Developing Global Business Leaders: Policies, Processes, and Innovations. Westport, CT: Quorum Books, 2001.

Sokuvitz, Sydel. “Global Business Communication: The Design and Delivery of MBA Instruction.” Business Communication Quarterly 65.1 (2006): 56

More related papers Related Essay Examples
Cite This paper
You're welcome to use this sample in your assignment. Be sure to cite it correctly

Reference

IvyPanda. (2021, December 10). Business Environment Analysis. https://ivypanda.com/essays/business-environment-analysis/

Work Cited

"Business Environment Analysis." IvyPanda, 10 Dec. 2021, ivypanda.com/essays/business-environment-analysis/.

References

IvyPanda. (2021) 'Business Environment Analysis'. 10 December.

References

IvyPanda. 2021. "Business Environment Analysis." December 10, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/business-environment-analysis/.

1. IvyPanda. "Business Environment Analysis." December 10, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/business-environment-analysis/.


Bibliography


IvyPanda. "Business Environment Analysis." December 10, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/business-environment-analysis/.

If, for any reason, you believe that this content should not be published on our website, please request its removal.
Updated:
This academic paper example has been carefully picked, checked and refined by our editorial team.
No AI was involved: only quilified experts contributed.
You are free to use it for the following purposes:
  • To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
  • As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
  • As a template for you assignment
Privacy Settings

IvyPanda uses cookies and similar technologies to enhance your experience, enabling functionalities such as:

  • Basic site functions
  • Ensuring secure, safe transactions
  • Secure account login
  • Remembering account, browser, and regional preferences
  • Remembering privacy and security settings
  • Analyzing site traffic and usage
  • Personalized search, content, and recommendations
  • Displaying relevant, targeted ads on and off IvyPanda

Please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy for detailed information.

Required Cookies & Technologies
Always active

Certain technologies we use are essential for critical functions such as security and site integrity, account authentication, security and privacy preferences, internal site usage and maintenance data, and ensuring the site operates correctly for browsing and transactions.

Site Customization

Cookies and similar technologies are used to enhance your experience by:

  • Remembering general and regional preferences
  • Personalizing content, search, recommendations, and offers

Some functions, such as personalized recommendations, account preferences, or localization, may not work correctly without these technologies. For more details, please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy.

Personalized Advertising

To enable personalized advertising (such as interest-based ads), we may share your data with our marketing and advertising partners using cookies and other technologies. These partners may have their own information collected about you. Turning off the personalized advertising setting won't stop you from seeing IvyPanda ads, but it may make the ads you see less relevant or more repetitive.

Personalized advertising may be considered a "sale" or "sharing" of the information under California and other state privacy laws, and you may have the right to opt out. Turning off personalized advertising allows you to exercise your right to opt out. Learn more in IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy.

1 / 1