1

Sustainable Solutions Paper

[Student Name]
DBA Strategy
[Instructor Name]
[Date]

Sustainable Solutions Paper

[Use this template for the sustainable solutions paper exactly as written. Do not add an
abstract, and do not add additional headings or delete any headings. Provide a brief introduction
to the paper here. This introductory section should be about to of a page - no more! Provide
a purpose and a preview state WHY the paper is valuable to the organization; this is the
purpose introduce the subject and provide a preview of what will be covered be specific
provide a list of key sections that will be covered. This is called a preview; it is not a synopsis.
Note: the heading Introduction is not required in APA. Note: All required headings are provided
in this paperLevel 1, Level 2 headings
and are in APA format. DO NOT delete them; just delete the text with [] (i.e., that surrounded
with brackets and the brackets themselves, and respond to each heading as the weekly
assignments require). Subordinate headings (Level 3) are also providedjust respond to them
and do not delete them. Also, delete the informational text indicating the week in which
iterations of a section are due (e.g., the bold text (Week 4 and Week 7) in the Executive
Summary section heading, below, should be deleted.]
Executive Summary (Week 4 and Week 7)
[SUMMARIZE the entire paper covering each of the key elements (sections) presented
throughout the document. Provide specifics, not generalities. State the organization name along
with a very brief description of it. The executive summary should be between two and three
pages and written last for obvious reasons. VERY IMPORTANT NOTE: An Executive
Summary is NOT an introduction. A summary provides a concise portrayal of the
results/outcomes of the processes such as the General Forces Analysis. It is not a restatement of
the process; it is a detailed, bottom line summary of the paper. Be very clear and be very

3
specific. This section should be between two and three pages. Introduce the section here. In each
subsection, provide a scholarly description of the concepts used in it.]
Summary Focus (Week 4 and Week 7)
[Text begins here. Summarize all of the key sections of the paper being as specific as can
be. Be sure to list the summarized sections. For example: Stakeholder Culture for this
organization can be described as . Economic trends of interest include . The top three
Threats and the top three Opportunities identified are . Note: executives would prefer to read
a short but detailed summary and may not have time to read a 50 60 page paper.]
Key Takeaways Week 4 and Week 7)
[Text begins here. List and discuss the key takeaways of the paper. What are the ah ha
discoveries from the paper? Key takeaways could be things like our vision and culture are/are
not congruent/aligned or our competitive strengths are exceptional/not clear]
Integration of Concepts (Week 4 and Week 7)
[Text begins here. For example, how is strategy and sustainability affected by
vision/mission, values, value chain, value system, life cycle, etc? What is the information flow
from the external (GFA, FFA) and internal (SHA, VCA) analyses to the SWOT, SCOT, KSF
from SHA, SWOT, SCOT, KSF to Analyzing Company Strategy Type, Analyzing Company
Strategy Moves, Alignment and Goals Analysis, Action Plan Analysis, and the Week 7 Analyses
in the paper? How do the theories/concepts synthesize to facilitate the information flow? How do
the theories/concepts integrate to facilitate the setting and executing of strategy?]

4
Stakeholder Identification and Value Analysis -Part I (Due in Week 4)
[This would be a good time to review the required readings in Weeks 1 through 4 and
additional references in the Walden Library before responding to this section in about one to two
pages. Introduce the section here. In each subsection, provide a scholarly description of the
concepts used in it.]
Enterprise Level Strategy
[Text begins here. This section should describe the enterprise level strategy exhibited by
your organization. There are some books, journal articles, and websites on this topic. You will
need to do some research. Use the Walden U library. Get help from a Walden U librarian.
Information specifically on enterprise level strategy may be sketchy and can be supplemented by
a discussion of the organizations vision, vision, objectives, and values.
Strategy starts at the top. In most cases this begins with the stakeholders. In this section
of the paper, you are expected to present a scholarly analysis of the stakeholders of the
organization and how they affect and are affected by the organization. Your synthesis and
analysis should address the following: (a) Who are the stakeholders of the organization? (b)
What are their values? (c) What outcomes do they value? (d) What is their enterprise level
strategy? (e) What is the vision, mission, and values statement of the organization? (f) What is
the alignment of the organizations stakeholders, their values, what outcomes they value, and the
organizations vision, mission, and values statement? To do this synthesis and analysis, you will
first be required to provide scholarly descriptions of these concepts. Then do the synthesis of the
concepts. Then do the analysis of the organization through the lens of the synthesis of the
concepts. ]

5
Culture Type
[Text begins here. This section should describe the concept of culture and the type of
culture exhibited by your organization as seen through the lens of this description. What is
your organizations culture? Your industrys culture? How do things get done? What is
rewarded? There are a several books, journal articles, and websites on this topic including one of
the course articles the Wheeler article. Use the Wheeler article to designate the type of culture.
Then offer your analysis and assessment of how the culture aligns with the the results of the
Stakeholder Analysis. The results of this work comprise the Culture Type section.]
Integrated Concepts From Readings
[Text begins here. This section should integrate concepts on culture and strategy covered
in the various documents reviewed in Weeks 1 through 4. Describe and synthesize the concepts
youve read and studied. Describe, for example, how the concepts/readings from the Enterprise
Level Strategy and Culture work youve completed synthesize and how they work together to
facilitate your assessment of organizational alignment. Include some other organizational
concepts such as systems thinking, double loop learning, and learning organizations. These
results comprise your Integrated Concepts from Readings. Are the enterprise strategy, culture,
vision/mission congruent/aligned? In order to have a learning organization,
congruence/alignment is important. Strategy will create change. A learning organization is
important for implementation/execution of strategy; double loop learning will likely be required.]
Evidence and Implications
[Text begins here. Provide evidence and support of the enterprise level strategy and
culture type for your organization and any implications noted. In this section you are asked to

6
provide examples that describe how your organization performs and how well your organization
does in terms of what the concepts portend/advise. This is one set of conclusions. An analysis
tool you can use is the compare/contrast analysis. What is similar? What is different? Then offer
the implications. That is, if the organization more closely paralleled the concept, what would
improve? If the organization varies from the concepts, what are the risks? NOTE: you will want
to consider the Integrated Concepts and Implications of this section when you complete
subsequent sections of the paper such as SWOT and SCOT analyses, Key Success Factors
analysis, Strategy Types, Strategy Moves, and Action Planning. As well, you will want to
consider these things as you complete the Implications sections of the Week 7 sections of the
paper.]
General Force Analysis: External Remote Environment (Due in Week 4)
[This section should take between five to nine pages. Introduce the section here. In each
subsection, provide a scholarly description of the concepts used in it.]
General Force Matrix Analysis
[Analyze the external environment. According to Pearce and Robinson (2003), there are
five categories of forces in the external environment: economics, demographics / social / culture,
government / legal / military, physical environment, and technology. Input to the General Force
Analysis (GFM) is the organizations external environment composed of these five categories.
The idea is to scan the external environment external and remote from the organization
remote being those forces that cannot be controlled or influenced by the organization and
search for trends, events, or forecasts of interest to the organization. Trends are the behavior of a
variable over time during the past, while forecasts are the projected behavior of a variable over

7
time in the future (Garland, 2007). A sample set of variables are provided for each category
below. Do not discuss anything internal or about the organization itself, as that comes later in
Value Chain Analysis. A good litmus test is to review your GFA after its complete and if you
find reference to your organization you may not have completed a true industry analysis. Output
from GFM analysis is a set of trends, events, or forecasts of interest to the organization. These
outputs from each external category should be assessed and identified as threats or opportunities
to the industry. Consider geography in this section as well that is consider the geography in
which your industry conducts business. For example, if your industry / organization is within a
specific region of a country, just focus on external environmental issues for this region to the
extent possible. Each trend should be listed along with the assessed affect on the industry (high,
medium, or low), its timeframe (less than one year, one to two years, more than two years), the
type of change (increasing, decreasing, no change, or unknown), and its importance to the
industry (critical, important, not important, or unknown). The top two or three threats and
opportunities should be discerned in the Implications of General Forces analysis. Be sure to
name them in your analysis and use this same name whenever each is referred to elsewhere in
the paper. This is a key readability point. These two or three threats and two or three
opportunities will be used as input to the SWOT and SCOT analysis below. An example of a
forecast from the United Nations is that the population of the world will increase by 50% over
the next 40 years. A technology trend and forecast, as observed by Gordon Moore, is that the
processing speed of a microprocessor doubles every 12 to 18 months. An economic trend is that
unemployment in the United States increased by about 5% over the last 12 months. The key to
trends or forecasts is to look for variables of interest see examples below.]

8
Economics. [Text begins here and continues on to the next line in a left hand justified
manner such as this. For example, a key economics trend facing our industry is . This trend
will have a major affect on our industry because . The timeframe is immediate. This trend is
rapidly increasing and therefore its importance to us is critical and we need to respond
immediately... For example, one economic trend affecting our industry is the amount of
disposable income per person, which has been decreasing by x% over the last 3 years (name it
here, such as decreasing disposable income per person. Use this name to reference it later on.
This trend is important to us because. this trend is a threat/opportunity to the industry (identify
clearly which it is). And so on.
Consider disposable income to be an economic variable and the trend is its behavior over
time. That is, this variable may grow, shrink, stay the same, or some ups and downs. Other
economic variables include, but are not limited to interest rates, inflation rates, GDP, consumer
price index, and so on. Focus on what is of interest to your industry.]
Technology. [Text begins here. Technology includes, but is not limited to biotechnology,
information technology, aerospace technology, manufacturing technology, agricultural
technology, energy technology and so on. Focus on those key variables of interest within the
type of technology of interest. For example, variables of interest in information technology may
include processor speed, disk space, bandwidth, software applications, robotics and so on. Name
the trend/forecast here. Identify the trend/forecast as a threat or opportunity to the industry here.
Refer to the name you give it here in subsequent references.]
Demographics / social / culture. [Text begins here. Some variables of interest might
include the number of marriages, number of divorces, birth / death rate, immigration, attitudes

9
toward women working, attitudes toward education and so on. Name the trend/forecast here.
Identify the trend/forecast as a threat or opportunity to the industry here. Refer to the name you
give it here in subsequent references.]
Government / legal / military. [Text begins here. Some variables of interest might
include changes in tax laws, changes in healthcare, military operations, nation building, arms
reduction or buildup, government regulations or deregulations, green energy development and so
on. Name the trend/forecast here. Identify the trend/forecast as a threat or opportunity to the
industry here. Refer to the name you give it here in subsequent references.]
Physical environment. [Text begins here. Some variables of interest might include
climate change, traffic congestion, recycling, urban development, conservation, endangered
species, availability or access to water and other resources and so on. Name the trend/forecast
here. Identify the trend/forecast as a threat or opportunity to the industry here. Refer to the name
you give it here in subsequent references.]
Implications of General Forces
[Assess trends, events, or forecasts as threats or opportunities here along with some
discussion of implications. Note: The top two or three of the opportunities and threats will be
used as input to SWOT / SCOT below.]
Threats. [Text begins here. Summarize the Threats here; use the name given to it in the
above analysis; list them and which component of the GFA they came from; provide a brief
analysis of the Threats from GFA and provide rational for selection of the top two or three.
Conclude which are the top two or three threats to your industry.]

10
Opportunities. [Text begins here. Summarize the Opportunities here; use the name
given to it in the above analysis; list them and which component of the GFA they came from;
provide a brief analysis of the Opportunities from GFA and provide rational for selection of the
top two or three. Conclude which are the top two or three opportunities your industry sees.]
Porters Five Forces Industry Analysis: External Industry Environment (Due in Week 4)
[This section should take between three to five pages. Introduce the section here. In each
subsection, provide a scholarly description of the concepts used in it.]
Five Forces Matrix Analysis
[Analyze the industry environment in this section. Inputs to this industry analysis are:
barriers to entry, competitive rivalry, availability of substitutes, bargaining power of suppliers,
and bargaining power of buyers. See the handouts for details. Output from this analysis is a set
of potential threats and opportunities to organizations in the industry.]
Barriers to entry. [Text begins here. According to Pearce and Robinson (2003), the
eight sources of barriers-to-entry are the following: (a) economies of scale, (b) product
differentiation, (c) capital requirements, (d) switching costs, (e) access to distribution channels,
(f) cost disadvantages independent of scale, (g) government policy, and (h) expected retaliation.
Address only those sources/barriers that are most important to your industry. Summarize the
overall threat(s) of entry as high, medium, or low. Identify this force as a threat or opportunity to
organizations in the industry.]
Substitutes. [Text begins here. This section concerns the ready availability of substitute
or alternative products. Substitutes limit the potential returns of an industry by placing a ceiling
on the prices organizations in the industry can profitably charge. The more attractive the price-

11
performance alternative offered by substitutes the firmer the lid on industry profits. Identify this
force as a threat or opportunity to organizations in the industry.]
Bargaining power of suppliers. [Text begins here. This section concerns the bargaining
power (high, medium, or low) of suppliers to influence the profitability of the organizations in
the industry. Suppliers can exert power over participants in an industry by threatening to raise
prices or reduce the quality of purchased goods and services. Summarize the overall supplier
power as high, medium, or low. Identify this force as a threat or opportunity to organizations in
the industry.]
Bargaining power of buyers. [Text begins here. This section concerns the bargaining
power (high, medium, or low) of buyers to influence the profitability of the organizations in the
industry. Buyers compete with the industry by forcing down prices, bargaining for higher quality
or more services, and playing competitors against each other. Summarize the overall buyer
power as high, medium, or low. Identify this force as a threat or opportunity to organizations in
the industry.]
Competitive rivalry. [Text begins here. This section concerns the major competitors of
the organization and their ability to effect profitability and survivability. The objective of a
competitor analysis is to develop a profile of the nature and success of the likely strategy changes
each competitor might make, each competitors probable response to the range of feasible
strategic moves other organizations could initiate, and each competitors probable reaction to the
array of industry changes and broader environmental shifts that might occur. Some questions to
consider include
1. Who are your top three to five competitors?

12
2. How are these competitors businesses performing increasing, decreasing, or
steady? How does each compare with yours?
3. What do you know or should you know about their operations, sales, advertising,
customers, and suppliers?
4. What are their strengths and weaknesses?
5. How do their products and services differ from your products and services?
6. What is the normal jockeying and behavior within the industry? What happens if
there is a new entry? What is the threat of entry? Consider what if analysis.
7. What if your major competitor lowered prices, bought a key supplier, brought out a
significantly new product? What does your organization do in response?
8.

Summarize the competitive rivalry in the industry as high, medium, or low. Identify
this force as a threat or opportunity to organizations in the industry.]

Implications of Five Forces

[List and discuss identified threats and opportunities here. For example, a competitor
may be in severe financial trouble and could be acquired this may be an opportunity! Your
organization may be facing bankruptcy a threat!]
Threats. [Text begins here. Summarize the Threats here; use the name given to each in
the above analysis; list them and which component of the FFA they came from; provide a brief
analysis of the Threats from FFA and provide rational for selection of the top two or three.
Conclude which are the top two or three threats to the organizations in the industry.]
Opportunities. [Text begins here. Summarize the Opportunities here; use the name
given to each in the above analysis; list them and which component of the FFA they came from;

13
provide a brief analysis of the Opportunities from FFA and provide rational for selection of the
top two or three. Conclude which are the top two or three.]
Detailed Value Chain Analysis: Internal Environment (due in Week 4)
[This section should take between four and six pages. Introduce the section here. In each
subsection, provide a scholarly description of the concepts used in it.]
Customized Value Chain of Activities in Table Form
[Analyze the organizations internal environment in this section. This fundamental and
key to understanding how your organization can successfully compete and win versus the
competition in the marketplace. Introduce the section. In each subsection, provide a scholarly
description of the concepts used in it. Use Porters description and discussion of a value chain
it contains nine elements of an organizational system: general administration, human resources,
R&D, procurement, inbound logistics, operations, outbound logistics, sales and marketing, and
service (Porter & Millar, 1985). Identify key business processes or activities within each
category and compare them to the organizations primary competition. Strengths and
weaknesses are only such as compared to competition; that is, if you do something better than
the competition, it is a strength; if you do not do something better than the competition, it is a
weakness. It may be that your organization has no strengths compared to the competition and it
is appropriate to say so, if that is the case. The outcome of this assessment will be a set of
strengths and weaknesses of YOUR organization. The table presented below may be useful in
this analysis. List the key business processes or activities in column 1, succinctly describe each
for your organization in column 2, and assess as a strength or weakness versus your top two
competitors in columns 3 and 4. Clearly name each strength and weakness and continue to use

14
these names whenever the strength or weakness is referenced later in this paper. Discuss and
elaborate on each column in narrative form after the table is populated; expand/elaborate upon
what you wrote in the cells of the table.]
Table 1
Value Chain Analysis
Business Process
Management
R&D

Your Organization

Competitor 1

Competitor 2

HR
Procurement
Inbound logistics
Operations
Outbound logistics
Sales
Service

Company Skills / Capabilities

[Text begins here: Provide scholarly descriptions of the concepts of Skills and
Capabilities. List and discuss the organizations key skills and capabilities. Provide rationale. If
they are derived from the strengths identified in the VCA, use the name assigned to them there.]
Implications of Competitive Analysis
[Text begins here introduce the four subsections that follow.]
Strengths. [Text begins here. Summarize the Strengths here; list them and state which
component of the VCA they came from; use the names established/stated in the VCA, above;
provide a brief analysis of the Strengths from VCA and provide rationale for selection of the top
two or three. List and discuss the top two or three strengths your organization exhibits, again
using the name established in the VCA.]

15
Weaknesses. [Text begins here. Summarize the Weaknesses here; list them and which
component of the VCA they came from; use the names established/stated in the VCA, above;
provide a brief analysis of the Weaknesses from VCA and provide rational for selection of the
top two or three. List and discuss the top two or three weaknesses your organization exhibits,
again using the name established in the VCA.]
Skills. [Text begins here. Identify your organizational skills; compare them to those of
your competition. If they are derived from the strengths identified in the VCA, use the name
assigned to them there. Identify your skills as Strengths or Weaknesses as compared to your
competition. List and discuss the top one to three skills your organization exhibits.]
Capabilities. [Text begins here. Identify your organizational capabilities; compare them
to those of your competition. If they are derived from the strengths identified in the VCA, use the
name assigned to them there. Identify your capabilities as Strengths or Weaknesses as compared
to your competition. List and discuss the top one to three capabilities your organization exhibits.]
Detailed SWOT Analysis (Due in Week 4)
[This section should take between four and eight pages. Introduce the section here. In
each subsection, provide a scholarly description of the concepts used in it.]
SWOT Factor Matrix
[Note: Strengths and weaknesses are found in the value chain analysis and threats and
opportunities are found in Threats and Opportunities Summary in the general forces analysis and
five forces analysis. That is, the Ss, Ws, Os, and Ts are derived from those analyses. Select the
top two or three in each category and use pair-wise analysis to explore how strengths can be used
to leverage opportunities (SO strategies) and avoid/defend against threats (ST strategies); and

16
how weaknesses can be overcome/managed to leverage opportunities (WO strategies) and be
managed to avoid/defend against threats (WT strategies; David, 2001).]
SO strategies. [Text begins here. For each identified strength, discuss how it can be
used to leverage or exploit an identified opportunity; provide an action statement (strategy) for
how a strength can be used to leverage an opportunity. Use the same names for the S and O that
were established in the VCA and GFA or FFA.]
ST strategies. [Text begins here. For each identified strength, discuss how it can be
used to avoid an identified threat. Provide an action statement (strategy) for how a strength can
be used to defend a threat. Use the same names for the S and T that were established in the VCA
and GFA or FFA.]
WO strategies. [Text begins here. For each identified weakness, discuss how it can be
mitigated by an identified opportunity. Provide an action statement (strategy) for how a weakness
can be managed to leverage an opportunity. Use the same names for the W and O that were
established in the VCA and GFA or FFA.]
WT strategies. [Text begins here. For each weakness, discuss how it can be along with
an identified threat can be minimized. Provide an action statement (strategy) for how a weakness
can be managed to defend a threat. Use the same names for the W and T that were established in
the VCA and GFA or FFA.]
SCOT Factor Matrix
[The same discussion as in SWOT applies here. Discuss SCOT strategies specifically
Skills / Opportunities (SO), Skills / Threats (ST), Capabilities / Opportunities (CO, and
Capabilities / Threats (CT) strategies.]

17
SO strategies. [Text begins here. For each identified skill, discuss how it can be used to
leverage or exploit an identified opportunity. Provide an action statement (strategy) for how a
skill can be used to leverage an opportunity. Use the same names for the Skill and T that were
established in the VCA and GFA or FFA.]
ST strategies. [Text begins here. For each identified skill, discuss how it can be used to
avoid an identified threat. Provide an action statement (strategy) for how a skill can be used to
defend a threat. Use the same names for the Skill and T that were established in the VCA and
GFA or FFA.]
CO strategies. [Text begins here. For each identified capability, discuss how it can be
used to leverage or exploit an identified opportunity. Provide an action statement (strategy) for
how a capability can be used to leverage an opportunity. Use the same names for the Capability
and O that were established in the VCA and GFA or FFA.]
CT strategies. [Text begins here. For each identified capability, discuss how it can be
used to avoid an identified threat. Provide an action statement (strategy) for how a capability can
be used to defend a threat. Use the same names for the Capability and T that were established in
the VCA and GFA or FFA.]
Key Success Factor Matrix Analysis
[Analysis of the internal skills and capabilities of the company under study (and of
potential competitors when needed), should lead you to identify the underlying
people/areas/systems that are at the heart of the value creation process for the company. Those
resources, if they are strategically related to future industry/customer needs and opportunities,
are the basis for future competitiveness.

18
However, being skilled and having strong competitive weapons today, is not an assurance
that the company will/can be competitive in the future. To begin to move to the step of strategic
choice making, you have to bounce the skills and capabilities analysis against the following
question: How important will these skills and capabilities be to future competitiveness? That
is, will the current skills and capabilities be key success factors for the future?
Identifying and understanding Key Success Factors requires that you look at the
intersection of skills, capabilities analysis, understand the nature of current and future
competitive weapons (outcomes), and assess the meaning of external threats and opportunities
(from the five forces and general forces analysis). Good strategic decision making attempts to
fill-in for critical weakness areas (lack of needed skills and capabilities), while leveraging
distinctive competencies.
Strategy, in many ways, is about the edges of analysis, in that the areas in which a
company is average generally do not need to be tended to (unless analysis shows it will be a
critical future area). Areas of distinction and shortage are what need to be addressed. Many
times, however, they are hiddenthats why you performed the external and internal analysis
earlierto try to un-earth the hidden issues. Also, pay attention to the results of the Stakeholder
analysis and the alignment, or lack of, identified there. Consider that influence here.
Examples of key success factors for real estate development include purchasing
developmental land; key success factors for software development include customer
requirements analysis, systems analysis, programming, and testing; and for retail stores key
success factors include location, hours of operation, customer service, and pricing.
List and describe / discuss the key success factors for your organization in this section
and why they are important. For example, the following 10 key success factors are critical for
the ABC Company .... because ..]

19
Implications of Analysis
[Provide a discussion of implications found in this analysis: SWOT / SCOT and KSFs.
For example, if the strategies formulated and the KSFs identified are followed, what does it
imply for your firm? What does it imply for regarding the stakeholders and the alignment of the
organization? Are all things congruent? What is the implication of the congruence or lack of
congruence?]
Analyzing the Company Strategy Type -Part II (Due Week 4)
[This section should take about one to two pages. Introduce the section here. In each
subsection, provide a scholarly description of the concepts used in it.]
Strategy Type
[Based on your reading in Strategy: Create and Implement the Best Strategy for Your
Business, specifically pages 29-46, identify the general strategy type that your analysis company
is likely pursuing, given your understanding of the competitive environment. Discuss the
alignment (or lack of alignment) of your chosen general strategy type with the Stakeholder and
SWOT analyses results.]
Supporting Argument
[Make an argument, based on evidence (of actions or directions of your firm), to support
your conclusion. Is this the strategy the company should pursue? Discuss any implications of
this analysis with implications from any of your previous analyses (e.g., Stakeholder Analysis,
SWOT Analysis, KSF Analysis), especially those that may not be congruent.]

20
Analyzing the Company Strategy Moves (Due in Week 4)
[This section should take about one to two pages. Introduce the section here. In each
subsection, provide a scholarly description of the concepts used in it.]
Relevant Strategy Moves
[Based on your reading in Strategy: Create and Implement the Best Strategy for Your
Business, specifically pages 47-60, identify what you think the future strategy moves should be
for your analysis company, given your understanding of the competitive environment. Discuss
the alignment (or lack of alignment) of your chosen strategy move with the Stakeholder and
SWOT analyses results.]
Supporting Argument
[Make an argument, based on evidence, to support your conclusions. Discuss any
implications of this analysis with implications from any of your previous analyses especially
those that may not be congruent (e.g., Stakeholder Analysis, SWOT Analysis, KSF Analysis).]
Alignment and Goals Analysis (Due in Week 4)
[This section should take between one and two pages. Introduce the section here. In each
subsection, provide a scholarly description of the concepts used in it.]
Alignment Checklist and Unit Goals
[Based on your reading in Strategy: Create and Implement the Best Strategy for Your
Business, specifically pages 61-93:
1. Complete an alignment checklist (p.74) for your business, given your understanding
of the competitive environment. Discuss any implications of this analysis with

21
implications from any of your previous analysesespecially those that may not be
congruent.
2. Complete a unit goals, metrics and action plan table (Figure 6-1), for your business,
given your understanding of the competitive environment.]
Supporting Argument
[Make an argument, based on evidence, to support your conclusions. Discuss any
implications of this analysis with implications from any of your previous analyses, especially
those that may not be congruent (e.g., Stakeholder Analysis, SWOT Analysis, KSF Analysis).]
Action Plan Analysis (Due in Week 4)
[This section should take about one page. Introduce the section here. In each subsection,
provide a scholarly description of the concepts used in it.]
Relevant Action Plan
[Based on your reading in Strategy: Create and Implement the Best Strategy for Your
Business, specifically pages 77-93 (especially the sample action plan on page 90-01), identify
what you think ought to be an action plan for your company. Focus on the
Strengths/Opportunities, Skills/Opportunities, Capabilities/Opportunities strategies set in the
SWOT. These are the fertile ground for success/winning in the marketplace. Identify
performance measures for your plan. Your plan should demonstrate responsibility and
accountability for what must be done by when to transform these strategies from strategy
statements to goals, action plans, and performance metrics and ultimately winning in the
marketplace.]

22
Supporting Argument
[Make an argument, based on evidence, to support your conclusions. Discuss any
implications of this analysis with implications from any of your previous analysesespecially
those that may not be congruent (e.g., Stakeholder Analysis, SWOT Analysis, KSF Analysis).]
Fitness Landscape Analysis (Due in Week 7)
[This section should take between one and two pages. There is some good information
on the Internet as well. Introduce the section here.]
Description of Fitness Landscape and Analysis
[Review Chapters 8 and 9 in Strategic Management and Organisational Dynamics. Focus
particularly on pages 197-200 and 212-217. Provide a scholarly description of the concepts.
What does the theory tell you? How does your organization/your industry behave compared
with the theory? Do the analysis how does the theory/concept guide your organization; view
the organization through the lens of the theory/concept; what does it tell you about your
organization and/or industry? Clearly state the results of your analysis.
Using the fitness landscape as a tool for understanding and explaining the internal
dynamics of an industry system, describe the evolution of the fitness landscape of your chosen
industry over the past 20 years. You can use broad strokes and should model your description on
that given in the book on pages 214-216. You will need to think creatively and conceptually in
this exercise.
Tie your description to data from public sources about your industry. Remember, this is a
big picture, evolutionary analysis. Tracking changes in technologies and other general forces

23
(from earlier analysis) should prove fruitful in this as they are part of the landscape, as are the
actions and interactions of competitors.
The goal is to see the previous data about your company and industry in a new light
particularly in an evolutionary, systems dynamics perspective.]
Implications of Analysis
[Describe the implications of your analysis, and any new insights that have come to you
as a result of applying this thinking tool. How does the theory/concept challenge your
organization to change? Improve? How does the theory/concept support your current strategies,
goals, plans, operations?]
Boid Analysis (Due in Week 7)
[This section should take about two pages. Introduce the section here.]
Boid Analysis Systems Description and Analysis
[Review Chapters 8 and 9 in Strategic Management and Organisational Dynamics,
focusing on pages 200-201. Provide a scholarly description of the concepts.
Do the analysis how does the theory/concept guide your organization; view the
organization through the lens of the theory/concept; what does it tell you about your organization
and/or industry? Clearly state the results of your analysis. Try to identify any basic and/or
fundamental rules that seem to guide behavior in your industry. What are they? Why do you
think they are the most fundamental rules? How do they differ from rules in other industries?
What are the implications of your thoughts?
Remember, you are studying the process of expanding traditional notions of strategy
and this kind of thinking is new to all of us and requires a re-framing of your thinking processes.

24
Dont be afraid to think creatively, conceptually, and even in abstract ways. The important
deliverable here is that you seek to identify simplifying structures, and explain their
implications.
Notes: List and describe any simple rules for Boid Analysis that apply to your
organization. For example, according to Fisher (2009) flocks of birds or schools of fish follow
three simple rules (among others of course) such as avoidance, alignment, and attraction (p.
26). Agents following these simple rules exhibit complex behavior. The key thing is to identify
any simple rules for your organization or industry. See http://www.red3d.com/cwr/boids/ for an
interesting discussion on this topic.]
Implications of Analysis
[Text begins here. List and discuss any implications of Boid Analysis for your
organization. How does the theory/concept challenge your organization to change? Improve?
How does the theory/concept support your current strategies, goals, plans, operations?]
Industry Evolution Modeling (Due in Week 7)
[This section should take between 2 and 3 pages. Introduce the section here.]
Industry Evolution Modeling Description and Analysis
[Review Chapters 8 and 9 in Strategic Management and Organisational Dynamics. Focus
particularly on pages 201-203 and 218-221. Provide a scholarly description of the concepts. One
of the statements that comes from the Ray Computer Experiment is that life in the universe,
and perhaps life in organizations, arises from a dialectic between competition and co-operation,
not from unconstrained competition (Stacey, 2007, p. 203).

25
Translate the essential implications of Rays Computer Simulation (p.201) and the
Fishing Experiment Findings of Allen (p.221) in terms of how they might apply to your chosen
industry. Can you identify the patterns of both competition and cooperation that have led to the
evolution of the industry?
Do the analysis how does the theory/concept guide your organization; view the
organization through the lens of the theory/concept; what does it tell you about your organization
and/or industry? Clearly state the results of your analysis.]
Implications of Analysis
[What are the implications of the current industry behaviors for future success? How does
this analysis relate back to the fitness landscape analysis? How does the theory/concept
challenge your organization to change? Improve? How does the theory/concept support your
current strategies, goals, plans, operations?]
Life Cycle Assessment (Due in Week 7)
[This section should take between two and three pages. Introduce the section here.]
LCA Modeling Description and Analysis
[Review NetMBA regarding Value Chain and Value System. Review Necessary
Revolution (Chapters 2-4, 8, 9, 14), and focus particularly on pages 212-217 and the associated
explanations in the Senge book. Provide a scholarly description of the concepts.
Based on your understanding of the reading, and particularly Figure 14.10 on page 214,
choose one or two products or services in your industry and draw a life cycle assessment diagram
(using either Microsoft Visio (and then save output as a bitmap), or the drawing tools in
Microsoft Excel). As Senge suggests:

26
Take a product or service your company offers and track it from left to right. Go
upstream to the left. What resources are you extracting? What are the byproducts? How have
you been dealing with the wastes? If your company provides a service, what key physical
products are also involved, such as cell phones and fiber optic cables? Track these material
inputs from left to right and ask yourself where they come from and where they go. If you do
not know, find out. Businesses that are thinking about the future, such as Alcoa, do not want to
put anything in the front end of their value chain that isn't benign or that can't be recaptured and
reused (2008, p.214). Think of your organizations Value Chain and the Value System within
which it operates. How does it relate to the LCA?
Senge then says that using this big picture framework will lead to strategic questions
that most businesses, operating within narrow boundaries, have long avoided (p. 216). What
are these larger strategic questions? Discuss how they relate to any previous analysis.
Do the analysis how does the theory/concept guide your organization; view the
organization through the lens of the theory/concept; what does it tell you about your organization
and/or industry? Clearly state the results of your analysis.]
Implications of Analysis
[Text begins here. List and describe the implications for your organization in this section.
How does the theory/concept challenge your organization to change? Improve? How does the
theory/concept support your current strategies, goals, plans, operations?]
Compliance to Innovation Analysis (Due in Week 7)
[This section should take between 2 and 3 pages. Introduce the section here.]

27
Compliance to Innovation Description and Analysis
[Review Necessary Revolution (Chapters 2-4, 8, 9, 14), and focus particularly on pages
114-118 and the associated explanations in the Senge book. Provide a scholarly description of
the concepts.
Based on your understanding of the reading, and particularly Figure 8.2 on page 115,
assess where you think the company (and or industry) you are studying fits in the complianceinnovation scale. Think back to your analysis of the enterprise strategy, vision/mission, and
culture. Think of the strategies and plans youve generated from the SWOT/SCOT analysis.
What is there from your analysis that would/could move (or restrain moving) your organization
from compliance to innovation?
Do the analysis how does the theory/concept guide your organization; view the
organization through the lens of the theory/concept; what does it tell you about your organization
and/or industry? Clearly state the results of your analysis.]
Implications of Analysis
[Provide evidence and argument, and discuss the implications of your analysis. Discuss
how they relate to any previous analysis. How does the theory/concept challenge your
organization to change? Improve? How does the theory/concept support your current strategies,
goals, plans, operations?]
Sustainable Value Framework Analysis (Due in Week 7)
[This section should take between 2 and 4 pages. Introduce the section here.]

28
Detailed Analysis of All Four Quadrants
[Review Necessary Revolution (Chapters 2-4, 8, 9, 14), and focus particularly on pages
119-133 and the associated explanations in the Senge book. Provide a scholarly description of
the concepts. Based on your understanding of the reading, and particularly Figure 9.2 on page
122, and discussion of the DuPont case (pages 124-133), describe the theory, and discuss your
organizations attributes (culture, mission/vision, etc.) and constructs (strategies, value chain,
value system, etc.) that may facilitate or block its progress from one quadrant to another. Then
prepare a sustainable value framework analysis for your chosen company. Specifically,
1. Start with analysis of the lower-left quadrant and identify ways that the company can
change its internal activities to reduce/eliminate waste, consumption and emissions
from operations. Discuss the potential for both cost and process time reductions, and
for risk reduction.
2. Move to the lower-right quadrant and identify relevant issues with respect to how
your company interacts with the larger stakeholder base. (You can, and should relate
this analysis back to the discussions/concepts from enterprise-level strategy and
stakeholder value frameworks). In what ways could your company change in order to
enhance its perceived legitimacy in the stakeholder system? How can the company
become more transparent and connected to the larger sphere of interests?
3. Move to the upper left quadrant and identify the relevant technology challenges and
opportunities that exist within the industry and company. What core skills could be
enhanced or created that could give the company a distinct advantage, while also
reducing the overall resource footprint of the company? How could the company

29
innovate and reposition itself, or even reinvent itself, in order to better serve its
current, and future customers and society?
4. Finish with a discussion of the growth trajectory for the company (upper right
quadrant). Try to identify preliminary answers to some of Senges questions on page
130, like How are we going to bring our products and services to a larger world and
shift our way of thinking about global social and environmental issues? How can
the company reach out to serve underserved populations? How can we grow within a
sustainable framework? What is there in your organization that would facilitate or
block your movement from one quadrant to another?
Do the analysis how does the theory/concept guide your organization; view the
organization through the lens of the theory/concept; what does it tell you about your organization
and/or industry? Clearly state the results of your analysis.
The following table may be helpful in providing a response to this section. This table
maps to the diagram on page 122.]
Table 2
Sustainable Value Framework
External

Tomorrow
Strategy:

Today
Strategy:

Internal

Payoff:
Strategy:

Payoff:
Strategy:

Payoff:

Payoff:

Argument in Support of Conclusions

[Provide evidence and argument for your support.]

30
Implications of Analysis
[Text begins here. List and describe the implications for your organization. How does the
theory/concept challenge your organization to change? Improve? How does the theory/concept
support your current strategies, goals, plans, operations?]
Conclusions
[Summarize the key points in the paper and provide any conclusive ideas. No new ideas
should be included in this section. Link your arguments for conclusions to the section of the
paper that states the analysis results used. Note: this should be considerable shorter than the
Executive Summary. This section should be less than a page.]

31
References
[List around 20 references used in creating this paper in APA format here. See examples
below. This section should be around 2 to 4 pages. Note: Only list references actually cited in the
body of the paper.]
Beinhocker, E. D. (2006a). The adaptable corporation. The McKinsey Quarterly. 77-87.
Beinhocker, E. D. (2006b). The origin of wealth: Evolution, complexity, and the radical
remaking of economics. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School.
Boar, B. (2001). The art of strategic planning for information technology, 2nd ed. New York, NY:
John Wiley & Sons.
Burgelman, R. A., Christensen, C.M., & Wheelwright, S.C. (2004). Strategic management of
technology and innovation. New York, NY McGraw-Hill.
Chesbrough, H. (2006). Open business models: How to thrive in the new innovation landscape.
Boston, MA: Harvard Business School.
Christensen, C. M., & Raynor, M. E. (2003). The innovators solution: Creating and sustaining
successful growth. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.
Christensen, C. M. (2004). Seeing whats next: Using the theories of innovation to predict
industry change. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.
Cornish, E. (2004). Futuring: The exploration of the future. Bethesda, MD. World Future
Society.
Crossan, M. M., Fry, J. N., & Killing, J. P. (2005). Strategic analysis and action, 6th Ed. Toronto,
Canada: Prentice-Hall.
David, F. R. (2001). Strategic management: Concepts and cases 8th Ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Prentice Hall.

32
Day, G. S., & Reibstein, D. J. (1997). Wharton on dynamic competitive strategy. New York, NY:
John Wiley & Sons.
Demars, C. (2007). Organizational change theories: A synthesis. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Epstein, M. J. (2008). Making sustainability work: Best practices in managing and measuring
corporate social, environmental, and economic impacts. San Francisco, CA: BerrettKoehler.
Fiksel, J. (2009). Design for environment: A guide to sustainable product development, 2nd Ed.
New York: McGraw-Hill.
Fisher, L. (2009). The perfect swarm: The science of complexity in everyday life. New York, NY:
Perseus.
Garland, E. (2007). Future inc.: How business can anticipate and profit from whats next. New
York, NY: AMACON.
Glenn, J. C., & Gordon, T. J. (2009). 2009 State of the future. Washington, DC: The Millennium
Project.
Herman, M., Frost, M., & Kurz, R. (2009). Wargaming for leaders: Strategic decision making
from the battlefield to the boardroom. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Miles, R. E., & Snow, C. C. (2003). Organizational strategy, structure, and process. Stanford,
CA: Stanford University Press.
Pearce, J. A., & Robinson, R. B. (2003). Strategic management: Formulation, implementation,
and control. Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill.
Porter, M. E., & Millar, V. E. (1985). How information gives you competitive advantage.
Harvard Business Review, 63(4), 149-160.

33
Ralston, B., & Wilson, I. (2006). The scenario planning handbook: Developing strategies in
uncertain times. Mason, OH: Thomson South-Western.
Richards, C. (2004). Certain to win. Xlibris Corporation.
Schein, E. H. (1992). Organization culture and leadership, 2nd Ed. San Francisco, CA: JosseyBass.
Senge, P., Smith, B., Kruschwitz, N., Laur, J., & Schely, S. (2008). The necessary revolution:
How individuals and organizations are working together to create a sustainable world.
New York, NY: Doubleday.
Stacey, R. D. (2007). Strategic management and organizational dynamics: The challenge of
complexity. London, England: FT Prentice-Hall.
Werbach, A. (2009). Strategy for sustainability: A business manifesto. Boston, MA: Harvard
Business Press.

34
[Notes:
(a) This entire paper should be between 40 and 60 pages.
(b) Please refer to the Sustainable Solutions Paper Application Rubric in the
Rubrics section of your online course, for a breakdown of the points for
iterations of this assignment.
(c) Please keep in mind that your paper should follow APA form and style. Your final draft of
this paper will be graded for APA form and style, for grammar, and for overall discussion
for Part I and Part II. You will also be graded for integration of prior feedback Week 4
into the Week 7 paper.
(d) This template or outline is to be used for the Week 4 and Week 7 paper. Week 7 elements
may be left in during the submittal for Week 4. Week 4 elements may be left in for
submittal of Week 7. No need to remove and reinsert just for drill!
(e) It is appropriate to search for other peer-reviewed references through
http://scholar.google.com as well as the Walden or other university library. Wikipedia is
NOT appropriate. It is a good place to start learning something and to find peer-reviewed
references. Just do not cite Wikipedia.
(f) APA highlights double space everything, two spaces after periods, cite in past tense
using last names only, no first names strive for gender neutrality, do not use
contractions, and read the APA V6 manual for details.
(g) In APA style, it is stronger to paraphrase and cite the source rather than to introduce the
paraphrase with the source. That is, it is stronger to state: The world is not flat (Galileo,
1640); it is weaker to state: Galileo (1640) says the world is not flat.

35
(h) Provide specifics do not toss out abstract generalitiesmud on the wall and expect
full credit!
(i) Be prepared to do some research above and beyond the provided and listed materials in
the classroom. The information is available, but may require some searching.
(j) Remember, this is a doctoral course.]

Some Hints on Writing your SSP:

The APA title for the SSP is:
Sustainable Solutions Paper
Under the title on page 2 of the paper, provide a brief (one half to three quarters of a page no
more) introduction to the paper (for Week 4, this is an introduction for the Week 4 sections of the
SSP; for Week 7, this is an introduction to the Week 4 and Week 7 sections of the SSP). An
introduction states the purpose of the paper and provides a preview of the major points presented
in the paper. The introduction does not provide any descriptions or any synopses of the contents
of the paper.
The APA Level 1 headings for the SSP are:
Executive Summary
Stakeholder Identification and Value Analysis Part I
General Force Analysis: External Remote Environment
Porters Five Forces Industry Analysis: External Industry Environment
Detailed Value Chain Analysis: Internal Environment
Detailed SWOT Analysis
Analyzing the Company Strategy Type Part II
Analyzing the Company Strategy Moves
Alignment and Goals Analysis
Action Plan Analysis
Fitness Landscape Analysis
Boid Analysis
Industry Evolution Modeling
Life Cycle Assessment
Compliance to Innovation Analysis
Sustainable Value Framework Analysis
Conclusions

36
For each Level 1 heading, provide a brief (two or three sentences) introduction to the section.
This terse introduction is the only writing between the Level 1 heading and the first Level 2
heading for the section.
An introduction states the purpose of the section and provides a preview of the major points
presented in the section. The introduction does not provide any descriptions or any synopses of
the contents of the section.
A terse, brief scholarly description is provided for each concept/theory applied in the SSP. This
terse, brief scholarly description is written first following the Level 2 or Level 3 heading section
in which your analysis is completed. In other words, first provide a scholarly description of the
theory you are using and then apply it in the analysis.
In many of the SSP Level 1 heading sections, there is a Level 2 section with the word
Implications in it. The implications are to capture the conclusions for the topic. Conclusions
state what you have learned. The conclusion should contain a definite, positive statement or call
to action but, that statement needs to be based on what you have provided in the paper/section.
Remember conclusions are formed based on the linking of results of the analysis. Conclusions do
not contain new analysis or introduce new information. When you form and write your
conclusions, link/refer back in your writing to the results of your analysis to support them. Use a
strong topic sentence to state your conclusion. The linkage/reference back to your analysis
results is part of your paragraph development in support of your topic sentence. In some cases
the topic sentence is succeeded or preceded by a transitional sentence linking the current
paragraph/section to the previous one or providing background information.
The SSP has no minimum or maximum number of pages. Following are the suggested number of
pages to do justice to the work required:
2 to 3 pages - Executive Summary
1 to 2 pages - Stakeholder Identification and Value Analysis Part I
5 to 9 pages - General Force Analysis: External Remote Environment
3 to 5 pages - Porters Five Forces Industry Analysis: External Industry Environment
4 to 6 pages - Detailed Value Chain Analysis: Internal Environment
4 to 8 pages - Detailed SWOT Analysis
1 to 2 pages - Analyzing the Company Strategy Type Part II
1 to 2 pages - Analyzing the Company Strategy Moves
1 to 2 pages - Alignment and Goals Analysis
1 page - Action Plan Analysis
2 pages - Fitness Landscape Analysis
2 pages - Boid Analysis
2 to 3 pages - Industry Evolution Modeling
2 to 3 pages - Life Cycle Assessment
2 to 3 pages - Compliance to Innovation Analysis
2 to 4 pages - Sustainable Value Framework Analysis

37
Less than 1 page Conclusions

38
References and Citations
All references and citations must comply with APA formatting (section 6 of the APA manual
presents the requirements; Section 7 of the APA manual provides additional examples; the
Walden Writing Center webpage has good information and examples). List around 20 reference
entries; remember (see p. 174 of the APA 6th edition manual) that each reference entry must be
cited at least once, each citation in the paper must have a reference entry, and citations and
references must match identically in spelling.
Writing
The SSP should be written using an introduction body conclusion style. This style applies to
the entire paper. It also applies to each Level 1 heading section of the paper. A transitional
phrase/sentence links one Level 1 heading section to another (see pages 65 71 of the APA
manual). Each paragraph uses the introduction body conclusion style, too. The topic sentence
is the introduction. The body is the description, explanation, data, facts, analysis, examples, etc.
The conclusion connects and summarizes the results of the analysis.
Each paragraph in the paper begins with a strong topic sentence it advises the reader of the
subject to be discussed. The topic sentence is followed by good paragraph development,
supporting the topic sentence. The paragraph is a series of sentences all related to the topic.
Multiple paragraphs on a theme are linked with a transitional phrase/sentence (see pages 65 71
of the APA manual). In some cases the topic sentence is succeeded or preceded by a transitional
sentence linking the current paragraph/section to the previous one or providing background
information.
This style of communication is meant to be direct, declarative, plain and to the point. It is meant
to lead the readers of your paper directly to what you want to tell them. It is not meant to open
their thinking process. It is meant to provide them the answers. (If they dont like your answers
and you have not supported your analysis and conclusions adequately, that will open their
thinking process.)
For purposes of this class, it is assumed that you know how to write well (i.e., grammar, spelling,
punctuation, and sentence clarity and structure) and that you understand what a topic sentence is
and how to do paragraph development in support of a topic sentence. If these assumptions are
not true, then, please contact your Academic Advisor and the Walden Writing Center and enroll
in some courses to achieve these writing skills.