Corporate Strategy| Business & Finance
Include copies of key research material you used, including industry Financial data (with sources cited); details on Financial analysis; and anything else that would clutter the main text (e.g., you can put your Porter 5-force details here). Be sure that you reference any appendices that you used in the main body of
your report.
********* IMPORTANT NOTES
Things you should keep in mind as you prepare your report:
• Assume the reader (your top management client) is at least as familiar as you are with the company (therefore, don’t waste time describing the case details without adding value).
• Avoid the common trap of exhausting yourself with too much analysis, and consequently shortchanging the conclusions and recommendations. Instead, keep in mind the whole report and balance your effort among the sections.
• Use the quantitative data in the case to full advantage (if there are Financial data, you must include analysis and conclusions from it). Support your analysis with numbers whenever possible. (For example, if you believe that the Firm has a competitive advantage, include in your analysis at least some of the following: What are the Firm’s net margins over the last several years? What are Returns on Equity, Returns on Assets, Return on Invested Capital? Compare with the competitors’ ratios.)
• Distinguish among facts, opinions, and assumptions.
• Check your work for completeness (are all issues identified and addressed?), justification (do you back up what you say with evidence?), logical Flow (is it clear how you moved from analysis to critical issues to alternatives to recommendations?).
• Organization is important. Think of the reader as you write and edit; make your report easy for the reader to follow and understand. Use headings and paragraphs. Check spelling and grammar. Carefully edit and proofread your report.
• Use lists, tables, and Figures as appropriate to communicate.
• Write this as a business report and don’t turn in anything you would not be willing to deliver to the president of your most important client company.
• The length of the report should be about 1800 words (excluding Appendices
