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STR 301 · Unit 2 of 6

Industry and Competitive Analysis

Competitive and Corporate Strategy

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Learning objectives

After completing this unit, you will be able to:

  • to business decisions
  • Apply the frameworks in "Industry and Competitive Analysis" to a real management decision
  • Make progress on your Competitive and Corporate Strategy case analysis applied project

Why this matters

Industry and Competitive Analysis is essential to Competitive and Corporate Strategy. Lessons build fluency with anchor-company examples, worked problems, and assessments on the unit page.

Lesson

Unit overview

Complete all 5 lessons in order. Each lesson follows the program authoring standard: conceptual prose, worked examples, practice problems, and managerial judgment prompts. Finish unit exercises and the knowledge check before marking the unit complete.

Connection to applied work

This unit feeds directly into Competitive and Corporate Strategy case analysis. As you read, capture notes, examples, and data you can reuse in that deliverable. Strong students finish each unit with a draft section of their project, not just highlights.

Practice

  1. Write a one-page summary of this unit in your own words without looking at the lesson.
  2. Find a real company example (public filing, news article, or personal experience) that illustrates the main concept.
  3. Draft one paragraph recommending an action a manager should take based on this unit.
  4. Add at least three terms from this unit to your course glossary.

Knowledge check

Answer these without notes before marking the unit complete:

  1. What is the central idea of "Industry and Competitive Analysis"?
  2. What mistake do beginners most often make when applying this material?
  3. How does this unit help you complete Competitive and Corporate Strategy case analysis?
  4. What is one decision you face this month where this unit applies?

Key takeaways

  • to business decisions
  • Business concepts only matter when they change a decision.
  • Your STR 301 assessment (Industry analysis, competitive advantage, business and corporate strategy.) rewards applied understanding, not memorization.

Unit assessment

Complete each section below. Score 80%+ on the quiz to finish this unit's assessment.

40% applied project35% knowledge checks25% reflections

Exercises

Apply what you learned in this unit with structured practice.

ExerciseApplied practice: Industry and Competitive Analysis45 min
Complete a focused practice exercise on **Industry and Competitive Analysis**. 1. Choose a real company, product, or situation you know. 2. Apply one core framework from this unit to analyze it. 3. Write your analysis in 300–500 words with a clear recommendation. 4. Cite at least one credible source.

Deliverable

300–500 word analysis document saved to your portfolio under STR 301.

Rubric

  • • Framework applied correctly (not just named)
  • • Specific evidence from a real example
  • • Clear recommendation with tradeoffs acknowledged
  • • Professional writing with source citation
ExerciseDrill: Industry and Competitive Analysis30 min
Work through the practice problems in the unit lesson without looking at notes. Then check your work against the lesson and write a short reflection: - What you got right - One mistake you caught - One concept to review before the next unit

Deliverable

Problem solutions + 150-word reflection in your STR 301 workbook.

Rubric

  • • Attempted all practice items before checking answers
  • • Honest reflection on errors
  • • Identifies a specific review action

Memo / written deliverable

Write a concise managerial deliverable for this unit.

MemoExecutive memo: Industry and Competitive Analysis50 min
Write a one-page executive memo applying **Industry and Competitive Analysis** to a business decision. **Format (SCR):** - **Situation:** Context in 2–3 sentences - **Complication:** What problem or opportunity exists - **Resolution:** Your recommendation and rationale Maximum one page, 12pt font, no appendix.

Deliverable

One-page PDF memo uploaded to your portfolio.

Rubric

  • • SCR structure is clear in first 30 seconds of reading
  • • Recommendation is specific and actionable
  • • Evidence supports the conclusion (not just opinion)
  • • Concise: no filler paragraphs

Knowledge quiz

Check your understanding before marking the unit complete.

1. In Veridian's five-forces analysis of workflow SaaS, buyer power is rated High because:

2. Veridian competes in mid-market horizontal workflow with regulated vertical overlays—not deepest ITSM nor cheapest PLG. This positioning is best described as:

3. Generic ERP connectors show maturity signals while regulated healthcare stacks remain growth-like. Veridian should:

4. Veridian loses a renewal when ServiceNow bundles Flow Designer into an ITSM enterprise agreement. The competitor analysis lesson is:

5. Leo war-games a 10% Enterprise price cut and expects Monday to match within 60 days. This supports which principle?

6. Microsoft bundles Power Automate into M365 E5. Which force shifts most directly?

7. Complements like cloud ERP and identity providers can raise Veridian switching costs when:

8. A healthcare RCM startup adds ERP connectors targeting Veridian accounts. Veridian's best response uses:

Next unit: Resources and Competitive Advantage →