Environmental Scanning and Industry Analysis
This program equips participants with the knowledge and analytical tools needed to assess the external forces shaping an organization’s strategy. Through exploration of macro-level factors such as economic conditions, sociocultural trends, technology, politics, and environmental change, participants learn how to identify opportunities, risks, and constraints in the business landscape. The session introduces key frameworks including PESTEL and Porter’s Five Forces, emphasizing their practical use in understanding industry structure, competition, and market dynamics. Participants also examine concepts such as industry segmentation, life-cycle stages, barriers to entry, supplier and buyer power, and competitive intelligence, gaining insight into how these factors influence profitability and long-term positioning. By the end of the course, participants will be able to conduct a focused environmental scan, evaluate competitive forces, and synthesize findings into actionable strategic insights that support informed decision-making.
Learning Objectives:
- Identify key macro-environmental and industry factors that influence organizational strategy.
- Explain how sociocultural, technological, economic, political, legal, and environmental trends shape business opportunities and risks.
- Use analytical frameworks such as PESTEL and Porter’s Five Forces to evaluate strategic conditions in a given scenario.
- Distinguish among different industry structures, life-cycle stages, and segmentation approaches to assess competitive dynamics.
- Judge the potential impact of market entry barriers, substitute products, and shifting industry boundaries on strategic positioning.
- Synthesize environmental and competitive insights into a coherent strategic assessment that supports organizational decision-making.
| When: |
Sunday, January 11th, 2025. 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM EST |
| Where: |
Your home or office |
| Speaker: |
William Kline, Ph.D., CFA, CSCA |
| CPE Credits: |
2 Business Management and Organization CPE |
| CLE Credits: |
2 Substantive CLE |
| Program Level: |
Basic |
| Prerequisites: |
None |
| Advanced Preparation: |
None |
| Delivery Method: |
Group Internet-Based |
The Presenters:
William Kline, Ph.D., CFA, CSCA, is an Assistant Professor of Management at Pennsylvania State University - Harrisburg. He received his Ph.D. in Strategic Management from the Fox School of Business at Temple University. He has received four awards for teaching excellence including the Beta Gamma Sigma Professor of the Year Award (PSU – Harrisburg), the Dean’s Award for Faculty Excellence and Stanley Fuchs Award (Fordham University), and the Award for Excellence in Teaching by a Doctoral Candidate (Temple University).
Dr. Kline’s primary research interests include strategic decision-making and executive compensation. He has been published in 9 peer-reviewed journals including the Academy of Management Perspectives, the Journal of International Management, and the Journal of Strategy & Management.
Prior to entering academia, Mr. Kline was a manager at PricewaterhouseCoopers where he completed valuations for mergers and acquisitions, business planning, as well as tax and financial reporting. Mr. Kline also spent time consulting at CBIZ Valuation Group, Inc. and Curtis Financial Group, a regional investment bank.
About CPE/CLE:
The ALA issues CLE credits as an accredited provider of CLE in Pennsylvania (PA CLE Provider # 5963). For additional information, please visit http://www.pacle.org/. It is the responsibility of each attorney to determine whether their state accepts CLE credits from a Pennsylvania-accredited provider. Acceptance of these credits varies by jurisdiction, and state-specific requirements may apply. Attorneys are encouraged to review their state’s CLE rules and regulations, including reciprocity policies, credit approval processes, and any submission requirements for out-of-state programs. The Accountant-Lawyer Alliance cannot guarantee CLE credit approval outside of Pennsylvania. For further guidance, please contact your state’s CLE regulatory body.
The Accountant-Lawyer Alliance, LLC is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA), as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. State boards of accountancy have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses for CPE credit. Complaints regarding registered sponsors may be addressed to the National Registry of CPE Sponsors, 150 Fourth Avenue North, Suite 700, Nashville, TN, 37219-2417. Web site:www.nasba.org.
