Environmental Scanning: Capitalize on emerging opportunities

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Disclaimer: This solution is my original work. I have referred to various sources including library sources; however have not copied from any source.

Problem:
? Complete an environmental scan and economic analysis on your selected department, group, division, function, or organization-for which you create a strategic plan-including the remote, industry, and operating environments.
? Write an environmental analysis in which you describe your organization's situation completely and accurately. You must identify any major changes you expect to affect your remote, industry, or operating environments in the next 5 to 10 years. Your analysis must complete the following: Refine the analysis of the forces and trends you completed for the Week Two assignment.
? Utilize a macroeconomic forecast of economic indicators that affect your chosen organization in the future and must be considered part of strategic planning.
? Analyze the noneconomic factors in the remote environment, including the following:
? Social and cultural
? Political
? Technological
? Demographic

? Complete a competitive analysis of your organization's position from a microeconomic perspective based on the pricing of the organization's primary product or service line, an assessment of its cost structure, and an assessment of the market in which the organization competes. This is a discussion, not a spreadsheet.
? Develop a summary of the organization's current situation, including its mission or business overview, its current competitive position, and the forces and trends in its industry. Based on this situation, identify three to six current opportunities and issues you believe must be addressed through the strategic-planning process.
? Identify strengths and weaknesses in the organization's operating environment which might be leveraged to capitalize on the emerging opportunities or minimize the threats that you identified in items 14.
? Create three to four strategic long-term objectives that may be measured to determine the success of the strategic plan.
? Revisit the mission and vision statements you modified in Week One. If necessary, modify or improve them further to align with your long-term objectives.

The response addresses the queries posted in 3000 plus words with references.

Those who ignore the environment do so at their peril because the consequences that affect them will likely be defined by others - Anonymous

//Before we start the Environmental Scan and Economic/Competitive Analysis of the company, it would be preferable to understand a few things about the company, its business and the pedigree of the organization.

Post this; I would like to mention a few things about the topics included within this explanation note.
The idea of this note is to provide you with a broader context of each and every aspect of the Environmental Scan and Economic/Competitive Analysis so that you can then refine your answers with a better understanding of the company. I assume that you have understood the subject matter quite well. I shall however include notes where ever possible to give a context before explaining the practical pointers for analysis.//

Company Background and History:
The 2009 Annual report of the company starts with the following:

"From an outlet store in St. Louis to a High Street store in Shanghai, from a mountaintop in Switzerland to a beach in Southern California, you'll find the brands of VF anywhere and everywhere around the world. Our diversity is our biggest strength, but it's more than simply geography. Our diversity is diversified. We have diversified brands, products, distribution, manufacturing, sourcing and, above all, people. Anywear and Everywear is a philosophy that drives us to continuously build and grow our portfolio of brands, so that we can support the diverse lifestyles of consumers around the world."

VFC is a company well respected by analysts, investors as well as customers like for various reasons. From its humble beginnings, the company has come across a substantial amount of change through the last 100 years. The history of the company below clearly gives us an idea of the DNA of the organization that is plush with entrepreneurship, innovation, willingness to adapt as per market requirements, an eye for quality as well as fair, sound and efficient management practices.

If we go through the organization history, the major milestones are as follows:
- Formation by a group of entrepreneurs in 1899.
- Early Years: Creation of Brand Vanity Fair. Venture into Silk lingerie.
- Mid 1900s - Product Innovation. Steady growth and overseas expansion.
- 1960s - Acquisitions and start of the apparel business. Emergence of Vanity Fair Corporation.
- 1980s - More Acquisitions. Market leadership followed by pangs of a growing company.
- 1990s - Rejuvenation
- Late 1990s and Beyond: Restructuring and Adding Brands for Future Growth
- 2009 - The journey continues...

Vanity Fair (VF) is the world's largest apparel company. According to Vanity Fair VF is a "dynamic, global powerhouse with more than $7 billion in annual revenues, over 30 dynamic lifestyle brands and over 44,000 associates working in locations across the globe" (VF Corporation, 2009, par 3). VF brands are sold in more than 150 countries by 67,000 retailers. VF Corporation's subsidiaries are spread across four key global regions: the US, Americas, Europe/Middle East/Africa (EMEA), Asia-Pacific (VF Corporation 1, 2009).

With more than 20 brands catering to chefs, outdoor adventurists, business uniforms, and the everyday consumer, VF Corporation continues to expand operations to provide the ...