Personal Reflection Paper
Name: [enter your name here]
This semester we have used strategic management principles to understand existing and nascent businesses. We have used the AFI framework; 1) to
analyze the firm and its environment, 2) to use these analyses to
formulate strategy, and 3) to design and structure organizations to best
implement the chosen strategy. I want you to turn the analysis self-ward and to analyze yourself as a potential business – you create value, you generate revenue, you incur costs either as an employee or as a self-employed entrepreneur.
Section 1 (external analysis)
Identify the job/business that you plan to work within. If you are still figuring out your plan, that’s great, choose a job/business that you would consider working in.
What is the job that you intend to do after graduation (if planning graduate school, then after graduate school). Same as above – if you do not yet know choose something you are considering or would realistically be interested in. [enter your answer here]
Describe the industry that this job is in (e.g., who are some of the existing firms or players in this industry, what technologies are being used, who are the customers…). [enter your answer here]
Do a Porter’s Five Forces analysis on this industry (not on yourself, do it on the industry)
1) Power of Suppliers to the Industry [enter your answer here]
2) Power of Buyers to the Industry [enter your answer here]
3) Rivalry among Existing Competitors within the Industry [enter your answer here]
4) Threat of New Entrants to the industry [enter your answer here]
5) Threat of Substitute Products/Services to the Industry’s Products/Services [enter your answer here]
Your overall conclusion, is this an attractive (profitable) industry to be in? Do you see this changing over time? [enter your answer here]
Section 2 (internal analysis)
Looking at myself as a viable economic entity, what are my core competencies? How can I create value for my employer (or for myself/customers/clients if self-employed / entrepreneur) in the future.
Resource/Capability #1
[Enter a description of what you see to be your most important personal resource / capability. Describe an instance where you demonstrated this ability]
Resource/Capability #2
[Enter a description of what you see to be your second most important personal resource / capability. Describe an instance where you demonstrated this ability]
Resource/Capability #3
[Enter a description of what you see to be your third most important personal resource / capability. Describe an instance where you demonstrated this ability]
Analyze your three most salient resources / core competencies using the VRIO framework (below).
Valuable | Rare | Inimitable | Organized | Advantage..? | |
Resource/Capability #1 | Yes/No and why | Yes/No and why | Yes/No and why | Yes/No and why | What type of Advantage does this give you? |
Resource/Capability #2 | Yes/No and why | Yes/No and why | Yes/No and why | Yes/No and why | What type of Advantage does this give you? |
Resource/Capability #3 | Yes/No and why | Yes/No and why | Yes/No and why | Yes/No and why | What type of Advantage does this give you? |
Section 3 (SWOT Analysis and Recommendations)
Using, and referring to, the information from the first two sections of this exam create a SWOT analysis focusing on yourself and the industry/job that you plan to work in.
Strengths [list and describe your strengths] | Weaknesses [list and describe your weaknesses] |
Opportunities [list and describe the opportunities within your intended industry] | Threats [list and describe the threats within your intended industry] |
Recommendation and Action Plan: Now that you have looked at the external environment and compared it to your internal resources and capabilities what are your plans? Using course concepts describe what steps you will take to ensure your personal success.
[Using course concepts describe your future steps here for your personal success.]
WPC 470 Spring 2024
