An organizations environment includes factors that it can readily affect as well as factors that largely lay beyond its influence. The latter set of factors are said to exist within the general environment. Because the general environment often has a substantial influence on an organizations level of success, executives must track trends and events as they evolve and try to anticipate the implications of these trends and events.

Executives rely on to organize factors within the general environment and to identify how these factors influence industries and the firms within them. Wise executives carefully examine each of these six segments to identify major opportunities and threats and then adjust their firms strategies. By using these 6 elements, show through examples how these elements will be applied to an organisation.

Defining strategy is not simple. Understanding different ways of thinking about strategy is the first toward mastering the art and science of strategic management. Strategy is a complex concept that involves many different processes and activities within an organization. To capture this complexity, Professor Henry Mintzberg of McGill University in Montreal, Canada, articulated what he labelled as the 5 Ps of strategy. Identify these 5 Ps of Mintzberg, and then show through examples how these 5 Ps are applied to strategic planning.