Milestone Three

Overview

The economic outlook includes an industry analysis and general economic overview. Industry analysis relates to the industry as a whole and includes factors that impact how a company leverages its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT). General economic overview relates to general external factors and how the domestic and global economy impacts the company’s output of goods and services.

Directions

In this milestone, you will describe the industry and economic outlook for the company you selected for the previous two milestones. For the microeconomic industry analysis, you will research the industry research reports that are available and examine the company’s competition to better understand the current competitive environment. You will describe how the competitive environment has changed over the past three years and where it is expected to go in the next three to five years. For the general macroeconomic analysis, you will research the primary economy the company operates in. If the company is a global organization, you will use the United States as the default primary economy. However, you will incorporate key global factors if the company operates in multiple countries or has plans to expand internationally.

Specifically, you must address the following rubric criteria:

Microeconomic Industry Analysis

1. Explain the industry outlook for the company. Include the following details in your response:Identify the primary industry the company operates in.Provide a general overview of the size of the industry both domestically and internationally.Explain current industry trends and emerging technologies that might impact the company’s industry in the future.
2. Explain how the supply and demand for the company’s industry may affect consumer behavior. Include the following details in your response:Explain major events that have impacted supply and demand for the company’s industry.Identify if there have been any supply chain issues. If so, explain how these issues have affected overall supply and demand.
3. Evaluate the competitive landscape for the company. Include the following details in your response:List the company’s current percent of the market share in this industry.List the company’s top three competitors and what percentage of the market share each competitor holds.Explain how the percentage of market share changed over the last three years for the company and its competitors.Explain the new competitors entering this industry.
4. Identify key data from the SWOT analysis for the company and its primary competitor. Include the following details to your response:Provide the citation for SWOT analysis from a reputable source for the company.Provide the citation for SWOT analysis from a reputable source for the company’s primary competitor.Identify the company’s major strengths and weaknesses compared to the company’s primary competitor.
5. Evaluate the impact of new or recently changed regulations specific to the company’s industry. Include the following details in your response:Provide a citation to the specific new regulation.Explain the advantages and/or disadvantages of the new regulation(s) for the company’s industry.
6. Identify potential international issues with the company expanding into global markets. Consider the following questions to guide your response:What historical data may affect the company as it expands?What potential future issues may arise based on current economic conditions?
7. Describe labor market trends in the company’s industry.
8. Explain how labor market trends might impact the company’s operations.

General Macroeconomic Analysis

1. Explain macroeconomic trends that might impact the company and/or its industry now and/or in the future. Consider the following questions to guide your response:How could economic output and consumption trends impact the company and/or its industry?How have interest rate changes impacted the company?How might the current gross domestic product (GDP) and its projected future movement impact the company’s future operations?
2. Identify changes in monetary policy trends that impacted the domestic and/or global economy the company operates in.
3. Explain how monetary policy changes have affected the company and/or its industry.
4. Identify changes in trade policy trends that impacted the domestic and/or global economy the company operates in.
5. Explain how trade policy changes have affected the company and/or its industry.

Summary

1. Summarize your findings for the valuation team. Include the following details in your response:Explain what you learned as you researched the external factors for the company.Identify the key points the valuation team needs to be aware of.
2. Create at least one effective visualization that supports key points. Include the following detail in your response:Provide appropriate labels for the visualization(s).

If you need writing support, access the Academic Support module of your course

What to Submit

Submit the

Business Valuation Template

with Milestone Three: Economic Outlook section completed. The Economic Outlook section should be an additional 4- to 6-page Microsoft Word document with double spacing, 12-point Times New Roman font, and one-inch margins in addition to the current page count. Sources should be cited according to APA style.

Note:You will be using this same file throughout all the milestones and your project

Supporting Materials

The following resources support your work on the project:

Website:

Shapiro Library

This website can be used for industry research and external research. To search for resources on the Shapiro Library website, use the following steps:

1. Under the Find Articles, eBooks, & More menu item, select Find News & Current Topics.
2. Use the Multi-Search field to combine key words. For example, “[company name] and industry” or “economic analysis.”
3. Use the Refine Results feature to limit the search to news articles from the past five years.
4. Review the search results to find a resource that piques your interest.

Website:

IBISWorld

This website can be used for industry research. Use the search bar in the top right corner. Type in the company name. IBISWorld will display industry options that you can explore further. Select the industry to learn more about micro and macroeconomic factors affecting the industry.

Resource:

My IBISWorld Overview

This resource describes how to navigate IBISWorld.A video transcript is available:

Transcript for IBISWorld Overview

Website:

Mergent Intellect

This website can be used for external research and micro and macroeconomic data. Use the Search Bar near the center of the page. Type in the company name. Mergent Intellect will display companies that you can explore further. Select the company. Use the tabs on the company page to explore these aspects of the company: company details, financial details, industry details, executive details, and family tree.

Resource:

Mergent Intellect Quick Search Guide

This resource describes how to use Mergent Intellect.A video transcript is available:

Transcript for Mergent Intellect Quick Search Guide

Website:

MarketLine

This website can be used to find a SWOT analysis for a company. Use the search bar near the center of the page. Type in the company name. MarketLine will display different categories with articles that reference the company. Scroll down to the Companies category. Select the company. There is a navigation menu on the left side of the screen. Select SWOT Analysis to view the company’s SWOT analysis. If you happen to encounter a login in screen, click on MarketLine in the upper left-hand corner to take you to the search page.

Resource:

MarketLine Search and Browse

This resource describes how to use MarketLine.A video transcript is available:

Transcript for MarketLine Search and Browse

Website:

Mergent Online

This website can be used to find information about a company’s competition and industry. This website can also be used to research recent news about the company. Use the search bar on the left of the page. Type in the company name. Click Go to the right of the search bar to conduct the search. Mergent Online will display a list of companies to choose from. Select the company. Use the tabs to navigate to different sections.

Resource:

Mergent Online Overview

This resource describes the tabs and subtabs used in Mergent Online.